Star Fox: The Phoenix Fire
by Demo ODST
Summary: Three and a half years after the Aparoid Threat,the Star Fox team is scattered and disbanded,nothing more than a memory. Fox, after losing the love of his life, has taken to trying to drink it away.Until an unexpected visitor asks him to take to the skys once more,chasing after a deadly assassin.Will Fox have what it takes to stop this threat?Or will these be the final days of Fox?
1. Prologue

A lone vulpine man stared into the empty whiskey glass in his hand. He sighed as he rapped his knuckles on the bar.

"Hey, nother round over here." The bartender brought a glass bottle over. He froze as the vulpine's hand grabbed his wrist. "Just leave the bottle." The bartender shrugged as the orange and white vulpine stared into the now full glass in his hand. He brought the glass up to his muzzle and let the whole container of liquid slide down his throat, burning the whole way down.

_Fox paced back and forth in his apartment, trying to think of how to say what was on his mind. Over the past six months, all he could think about every time the team went into combat, was whether Krystal was going to be hurt or not, lately, so much that it was starting to cloud his judgment in combat. He wasn't simply scared of the blue vixen being hurt, but utterly terrified of it. it had been invading his dreams for weeks now, almost every night, an increasingly gruesome and painful death or injury was shown to him, to the point that he was now terrified of falling asleep. _The only solution, is that she leaves the team. We can get an apartment together, or maybe a new ship. We'd still be together…_ his thoughts were suddenly cut off as a pair of familiar soft arms wrapped around him from behind, a nose gently nuzzling his ear._

_ "Hey Fox, what's going on?" he sighed as he turned around, holding her at arm's length and simply admiring her beauty. She sighed before she spoke again. "Come on Fox, I could feel your distress from three blocks away, what's on your mind, you've been like this for weeks now?" he sighed and pulled away from her, dropping onto the couch and running his hands over his head. Krystal sat beside him, gently stroking his shoulder, her stunning turquoise eyes fixed on him._

_ "Krystal, I want you off the Star Fox team." Her entire body froze, and even Fox could feel the sudden pang of pain emanate from her._

_ "What?" he looked directly at her now, seeing the wide eyed expression, and knowing she was terrified._

_ "It's not that I don't like you Krystal, hell, I love you more than I thought I ever could love someone. I just don't want to see you hurt. Everything is already done, and where ever I go, can be your home." She stood up and marched over to the window, her head falling into her hand. "I don't want us to stop being together, I just don't want you in combat anymore." He stood and walked over to her, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. She violently swatted it off, her voice seeming to explode out of her._

_ "And it's already done? Just like that, you just kick me off the team, without even asking what I thought first! You didn't want to lose me? Well guess what, you just did, you self-centered ass. What, did you think I was just going to be your good little pet and do exactly what you say? Don't even try to follow me!" she stormed right back out the door, tears already streaming down Fox's face. Pain seemed to radiate from his chest as he slumped to the floor, his back against the sofa._

"Hey, you alright?" the bartender was standing in front of him now, leaning on the bar. Fox's eyes felt wet as he responded, letting a sharp edge into his voice.

"I'm fine." The bartender grunted at him, almost as if he was about to laugh.

"No you're not. The McCloud I heard about, wouldn't be drowning himself in this shit hole." Fox glared at him and the bartender threw his hands up and walked off. "Alright, I get it, don't want to talk." Fox sloshed more of the dark amber liquid into the glass, spilling some over the rim. He chugged the glass again as newer memories flashed through his mind.

_"Fox, we got new contacts! Four of them!" he glanced down at his sensor board, watching the pirate fighters retreating as the four new ships approached._

_ "Alright Falco, let's get them!" he rolled and pitched his Arwing, lancing toward the enemies. All four ships had the same red and black hull, all too familiar to Fox. "Star Wolf." A new voice came over the radio._

_ "We have you out numbered two to one Fox. If you have a brain, you'll stand down." He grunted as the distance closed between them._

_ "You've never beaten us before, you're not starting now." He fired his lasers at the lead Wolfen and the formation split into different directions. Fox looped after the lead fighter, trying to stay tight on his tail as he juked and maneuvered._

_ "Not this time, Star Fox!" a Wolfen dropped onto his tail and Fox was forced to break off, rolling and diving away. It was almost like the pilot knew what he was going to do, and a missile slammed into his Arwing. He fought to bring the fighter back under control as alarms went off in the cockpit. The fighter stopped spinning and he pulled up toward his assailant. The fighter was already lined up on a head to head course. He rolled and yanked back on the control stick, causing his fighter to corkscrew. The Wolfen shot past, unable to hit Fox as he brought the G-diffusers online and ruddered, swinging the fighter into a chase of the Wolfen. It juked and rolled, but to no avail as Fox pounded laser after laser into the fighter._

_ "At least you haven't lost your touch, Fox!" Fox froze as the familiar feminine voice spoke. He brought his fighter to a stop as he spoke into the radio._

_ "Kr-Krystal? What are you doing in Star Wolf?" she didn't respond as she brought her fighter around and fired into Fox's unshielded Arwing._

Fox poured himself another shot and was about to down it as a female voice drew his attention.

"I'm looking for a Vulpine male. Good looking, not a bad pilot. Someone said he might be around here." Fox glanced up, seeing the familiar Reddish brown Vulpine leaning on the bar, staring at him with a slight smirk on her face. She had let her vibrant red hair grow out well past her shoulders in the almost thirteen years since he had seen her. She had a pair of low profile goggles on her head, acting almost as a hair band. A three-quarter sleeve jacket hid a tank top underneath, and her cargo pants had a blaster hanging off her hip.

"Fara?" she had a sad smile on her face as she spoke to him again.

"Yeah Fox, the one and only. Look, I'm sorry, but I need your help with something. Will you?" Fox glanced down at his glass, unable to look at her.

"Twelve and a half years since we broke up, and you walk in, asking for my help. A lot has changed since we were in school Fara." She stood closer to Fox and crossed her arms, leaning on the bar again. Fox downed the glass again as she spoke

"I know. I'm not exactly the girly girl you knew." Fox grunted, letting his forehead rest on his hand as he stared at the glass in his hand. "Look, I'm working for Peppy to hunt down an assassin. I could use some one with your skills."

"I'm not a mercenary anymore. Go find someone else to go on your little crusade." He poured another shot and downed it faster than it filled.

"Fox, you remember Senator Spaniel? We are hunting the assassin who killed him. Fox, if you won't do it for Peppy, do it for me. For old time's sake." He glared at her for a second before he growled and dropped a cluster of bills on the counter.

"Fine. Once this assassin is dead, then I'm out, permanently." Fara nodded and held out her hand smiling.

"Let's go meet the rest of the Phoenix Fire then." He shook her hand before they marched out of the dark bar and onto the busy streets of Corneria.


	2. Chapter 1

Falco suppressed a grin, keeping his face as calm and stone like as he could. He glanced at the two others at the table as they placed their cards on the table.

"Pair of kings." The primate sounded cocky and overly confident.

"Three Queens." The red lizard dropped his cards onto the table, grinning. Falco just smirked as he spoke, gingerly placing his cards down.

"Well, I'm sorry to say this but I think yall owe me some money." He grinned as they stared at the four Aces in his hand.

"Damn Bird! You cheated!" the Primate was reaching for his blaster when a silky voice came from behind him.

"Now is that the sportsmanly way to deal with this? Pay the bird. It will end better for you that way." He slowly sat back down as the black furred feline pointed her blaster at the ceiling. The two of them shoved the bills toward Falco and he pocketed them before collecting the cards. The Feline dropped into one of the vacated seats as Falco spoke.

"Katt, what the hell are you doing here!?" she let out a purr as she propped her slender legs on the table. She was inspecting her blaster as she spoke.

"What, I can't say hello to my friend? It's been way too long Falco. Besides, you needed my help there." He glared at her as he stood up, letting his right hand fall to one of the blasters on his hip.

"I had it handled." He started to march away, only to have her grab his arm.

"Ah come on Falco, have a few with me. For old time's sake." He glared at her, letting the barest trace of a smile show at the edge of his beak.

"Alright, a few drinks you little rascal, come on." she smiled as she let go of him, practically bouncing beside him.

* * *

><p>Fox gingerly piloted his Arwing into the small cargo haulers hold, just as Fara had instructed him too. Three other Arwings, third generations like his own, were placed nose to tail along the hold. X-03 Arwings, or third generation, were very simply designed fighters, with a very angular pointed fuselage and two very long wings, always angled back to some degree. The main lasers were on either side of the fighter, built in right above the gyro's that allowed the wings to sweep back and forth. On the outside of weapon mounts, were four large and thick wing like structures, the bottom two angling away from the craft, and the top two angling more toward the center of the craft, but both still relatively vertical. These were the G-diffusers, they were also on gyros, only these allowed them to open and close vertically. Although the fighters main propulsion was a single powerful Ion engine, built into the back of the fuselage, almost all of the fighter's maneuvering was controlled by the G-diffusers shifting positions. When they opened, the craft would slow, almost as if someone was applying brakes. Thus, if only one side opened, the craft would yaw, or rudder around. Or, if they didn't open, but the angle was raised, the craft would pitch up. Or, if one set was elevated, and the other was descended, the craft would roll. These also counter the natural inertia on the pilot, allowing the craft to pull much tighter and faster maneuvers. All three of the other fighters had fresh bright red paint on their G-Diffusers, unlike the faded and scored sky blue on Fox's. The fighter jerked slightly as he set it down on the last rack, behind the other fighters. He powered the craft down and opened the canopy. There was a duffel bag that he had dropped behind his seat, due to the fact that the craft's small cargo bay had been replaced with a missile tube, that he pulled out as a voice called to him.<p>

"Hey Fox! For a second, I thought you weren't gonna show!" he glared at Fara as he dropped off the fighter's fuselage.

"I told you I would, so I did." She smiled and hugged him, to which he didn't try to hug back.

"Come on, let me introduce you to the others." He followed Fara into the crew area of the ship. She gestured him through a door and into a small lounge. It was vacant of all but two people, a very long eared spotted female feline, and a very delicate looking white female canine. The canine looked up as they walked in, instantly smiling. The simple gesture seemed to fit her long curly hair and deep blue eyes perfectly. The Feline was sprawled into the corner, much how Fox imagined Falco would've if he had been there. Her golden base fur seemed to accent the dark spots across her body perfectly. Her electric blue eyes seemed almost wild, always roaming the room. They were wearing similar outfits to Fara, but the Feline didn't have a jacket, just the tank top, and the canine had a white long sleeve jacket and shirt, rather than Fara's shortened sleeves.

"Hello Mr. McCloud. It's a pleasure to meet you." The Canine politely held out her hand to him as she stood up. He shook it as he sat down across from the feline.

"It's just Fox. And you are?" she blushed slightly as she spoke.

"Fay Spaniel." He looked at the other woman who leaned forward, suddenly seeming to be much more interested in Fox then when he had walked in.

"Miyu. Just Miyu. Hope you're even half as good as they say." He held his hand out to her and she roughly shook it before leaning back into the corner.

"Spaniel, that name seems familiar." Fox rubbed his chin, trying to think of where he had heard that name.

"Fay's father was Senator Spaniel. Peppy asked us to protect Fay." Fara's word's seemed to have struck a sore spot as Fay's face became suddenly sad and she looked away. Miyu almost instantly spoke up.

"But we instead enlisted her to fly with us. She gave us the name." Miyu winked as she finished, leaning forward on the table. Fox glanced at the White canine as he spoke softly. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Miyu wrinkle her nose, a disgusted look on her face.

"The Phoenix Fire. Not too bad there." Her eyes fluttered slightly as she smiled, blushing furiously.

"I'm sorry to say, but, the two of them don't have a whole lot of flight experience. If you could teach them a few things, I'd appreciate it." Fara finally sat down beside Fox, leaning on the table, her hands clasped together, much like Miyu beside her.

"I have to ask, Fara, where did you learn to fly?" she smiled as she locked eyes with Fox. He honestly didn't mind an excuse to stare into their deep emerald color.

"After you and Bill ran off to the academy, I finished standard school. Then I joined just before the Lylat war started. Been flying as a Cornerian test pilot until about a year ago. Then me and Miyu started with some bounty hunting and merc work for the CDF. Couple months later, Fay joined up." Fox stayed silent for a minute before he spoke, staying very quiet.

"How long have you been after this assassin, and what do you know about him?" Miyu laughed as he spoke and Fara glared at her.

"Almost nine months. Originally, all we knew is that _she _worked alone, uses a silenced light weight sniper rifle, and wears a hood and veil. We don't have any idea what she looks like, but a recent contact got us her name, Kursed. We are on our way to meet with him now." Fox nodded before he stretched and yawned.

"Well, if someone can show me where I sleep on this rust bucket, I'd appreciate it." Fara gestured to Miyu as she spoke.

"Well, I could only wrangle us two cabins, so you and Miyu are bunking together. She'll show you there." Miyu glared as she stood and led Fox out of the room. He followed her a short way into the ship. She stopped at one of the doors and jerked her thumb toward the door, her arms crossed.

"We're in here. Might want to wash that alcohol stench off you." She wrinkled her nose as he stepped through the door and dug into his duffel for a change of clothes. She didn't follow him into the room as he stepped into the small bathroom, stripping his clothes and standing in the warm water, staring at the wall. Images started flashing through his mind, no matter how hard he tried to stop them.

_Fox smiled as he stared up at the stars, the soft warm sand beneath him blissfully heating his body. Krystal shifted beside him, snuggled up against his chest and sound asleep. A small smile was spreading across her face as he watched her._

The images suddenly changed from the peaceful saurian beach to an asteroid field.

_Laser's tore through Fox's Arwing, splintering the ship apart. A piece of metal tore into his gut and he fought to stay awake through the intense pain. The cockpit drifted slowly in the small debris field around it as a Wolfen lined up on the cockpit, its Charge laser glowing vibrant green. Krystal's voice filled his ears as he picked out the familiar blue Vixen in the Wolfen._

_"Good bye Fox." The Wolfen suddenly detonated as two missiles lanced in from above it. Falco's Arwing shot past as Fox screamed._

_"Krystal! No!" he felt his cockpit vibrate as something dragged his fighter away from the expanding debris field that had once been the woman he loved._

Fox fell back against the shower wall, almost as if someone had slammed him into it. He dragged himself out of the water and toweled himself off before he tugged his pants on. He didn't bother putting his shirt on as he stepped back into the room, sitting down on one of the beds. His head fell into his hands as he shook uncontrollably. The door opened, causing Fox to jump, his head hitting the metal above the bunk. Miyu stepped in as he rubbed the top of his head. She was glaring at him for a second as her eyes slid across his body, stopping on the strange scar on his abdomen.

"What's that?" she pointed at his gut as she dropped into the other bed, kicking her combat boots off and stretching out.

"A scar." Fox laid down on the bed as he spoke, fingering the year old injury.

"I can see that McCloud. How'd you get it?" he rolled to face the wall so she couldn't see his face.

"Doesn't matter." Silence fell across the room as Fox stared at the wall.

"That's a pretty nasty injury, I mean, looks like it passed clean through you." Fox rolled over, his voice raising in volume as he came near shouting at her.

"They had to cut me out of my cockpit after shrapnel tore through it! There, ya happy now!" she stared at Fox, wide eyed as he panted slightly. He rolled back over staring at the wall until he finally drifted off into his normally fitful sleep.

* * *

><p>Kursed found herself fingering a small charred piece of metal she kept on a string around her neck, a vague memory shooting through her mind. <em>She yanked on the small emblem, ripping the cord and throwing it into the fire with rage.<em> The memory became fuzzy for a few seconds, just before she returned to that same room. _She stared at the ashes in the fire place her eyes flicking through the ash until she saw a glint of what she was looking for. She pulled the charred piece of metal out, somehow knowing it was important to her, but unsure as to why_. She slowly pulled her armor on, before raising the hood and tying the veil in place. She was pulling her cloak on as the screen in her room came on, warning her of the incoming call. She answered it and the silhouette was speaking almost instantly.

"Miss Kursed, I have a new job for you. I want you to bring Fox McCloud to me, alive." Her heart skipped a beat as she heard that name, her entire body freezing. For reasons that she didn't fully understand, that name seemed vaguely familiar to her. "I have already transferred the first quarter of the payment into your account. I'm sure you find it acceptable."

"How much? And you know I prefer to kill." The silhouette shook with laughter before he responded.

"Check your account. I'm sure you will make an exception just this once. Also, check with a Feline name Caroso, I believe you will find his information quite appetizing." She checked, seeing the hundred thousand Liat now in her account. Caroso on the other hand, was much more familiar name, and was one of the few people she could remember from before the scavengers had found her. Although it was still indistinct, she knew they had been close, until he cheated on her and tried to lie about it.

"Fine, I'll do it." she knew he was smiling as she cut off the call. She dug the small charred piece of metal back out from under her chest plate, staring at it for a second. She sighed, knowing that she had never been able to pierce the fog that veiled the memories of it.


	3. Chapter 2

Panther slowly slipped out from under the covers of his bed, trying to not disturb the silvery white feline sleeping in it. He watched her for a second, simply listening to the sound of her purring. Panther was wondering if she would come back the next night as he stepped out on to the balcony, watching ships pass through the asteroid city. The core and equator of the asteroid had been mined almost entirely away, leaving the tunnel structures behind. Three warlords had used these frames to build massive towers, creating a city with in the asteroid. A feminine voice made him jump, his hand dropping to where a blaster would've been, if he was still dressed.

"Hello Panther. Someone tells me you have information for me?" Panther backed away from the figure, all the way to the edge of the balcony. Her hooded cloak and veil was as distinct as a calling card.

"And what could I possibly know what you want, Kursed?" he heard the safety flick off on the black sniper rifle in her hands. Panther gulped as she spoke.

"I want to know where to find Fox McCloud. Tell me, and I may spare your life." Panther fought to keep his face innocent as he spoke, staring into the woman's turquoise eyes. He knew it was only a matter of hours before Fox was supposed to get to the very asteroid city he was in.

"I don't know. I haven't even heard that name in over a year!" she sighed, the weapon drooping slightly.

"Panther, you never did learn to not lie to me." And with that, the weapon fired, the solid slug tearing through Panthers chest. The pain was so intense that he never felt himself topple over the railing.

* * *

><p>Fara gracefully piloted her Arwing out of the freighter. She suddenly felt free for the first time since she had boarded the ship days prior. The hold doors closed behind her fighter as she gunned the engines, racing to catch up with Fox. His jury rigged Arwing was leading the small formation as they approached the Asteroid city.<p>

"Fara, you never did tell me who we are meeting out here?" she grimaced, knowing he might explode at her if she told him. She had heard the rumors about the last time he had seen this person.

"He doesn't want me to tell you. Said it's a surprise. Don't worry about it, he's a friend." She heard him growl over the radio, but he stayed silent. She glanced over at the other two red and grey Arwings, watching as they drifted in and out of formation. She sighed as she boosted ahead of Fox. His ragged fighter dropped into a trail position, still holding position in the formation almost perfectly. She guided them to a private hanger and lowered her fighter to the deck plating. The canopy opened as she put the craft in stand by and leapt out. The others grouped around her, Fox standing out not just for being male, but because of the blaster carbine slung over his shoulder.

"Alright Fox, this place was established by Warlords, who now rule the whole station. It's basically lawless, but be careful who you shoot. These guys pay back in blood." Fox nodded as they moved toward the door. Fara led the way, occasionally glancing back to make sure they were keeping up. Fay was trying to hide in the center of the group, hiding her face under a thick hood. Miyu and Fox both seemed unaffected by the filthy streets they crossed. Scrap was tossed in piles large enough to hide small fighters, stacked at random in the streets. Fara heard Miyu call to her and she stopped.

"Fara, Fox stopped back there!" she trotted back to Miyu and followed her to where Fox was crouched on one of the scrap piles. He was digging through the pile, slowly uncovering a green and white hull.

"Fox? What are you doing?" he stopped digging as he stared at words painted on the sheet of metal.

"It's Bill's ship, look." He stepped out of the way as she stared at the name painted on the hull. _CDR Bill Grey._ Her mouth dropped open as she stared at the plating. Given the tallies of Aparoids on the hull, it had to have been taken fairly recently.

"I'm sure he just got an upgrade or something. They get most of this trash from dump yards." Fox stared at the ship hull as she grabbed his arm, gently tugging him away. He kept glancing over his shoulder until the scrap pile was out of sight. The four of them finally reached an elevator and she depressed the floor button marked 'cantina'. The elevator came to a stop and she stepped out. The cantina was more like a club than anything else, with a massive dance floor surrounded by booths and a bar. Music with a deep pulsing beat blared throughout the crowded room. She led the way to a table nestled in the corner of the room, staring through the glass walls that surrounded the club floor. Catwalks crisscrossed all across the exterior, leading to high-rises and other complexes.

"How long until this friend of yours gets here Fara?" she smiled as Fay glanced around the room, nervously.

"He's in here. I'm sure he's just waiting for the right moment." A dark hooded figure, almost on cue to her words, slid onto the bench next to her. She smiled as he dropped his hood, showing the dark grey fur and his wild canine features. His mechanical eye glowed faintly red beneath its glass plate.

"Hey Fara." He was smiling back to her. They both froze as they heard a safety click off on a blaster. Fara could just barely hear Fox's low growl as he pointed the weapon across the table at Wolf.

"You have five seconds to start running, otherwise, I'm putting a smoking hole through that mug!" Fara leaned across the table and placed her hand on the pistol's barrel.

"It's okay Fox. He's the contact. He got us the information on Kursed." Fox glanced at her before yanking the weapon out of her hands and holstering it.

"Fine. Make it quick, Wolf." She watched as Wolf relaxed slightly, but she could tell something was off.

"Fara, Panther was killed this morning. Low caliber, high velocity slug, close range. Sledge hammer rounds." She felt tears well into her eyes as he spoke.

"Kursed?" He nodded, staying silent. She couldn't see his organic eye, but the way the red glow disappeared, she knew he was fighting to hold tears in. whether he showed it or not, he had grown to care about his pilots since the Aparoid threat. Fox suddenly spoke, breaking the silence.

"I don't care if you're damned cat is dead. Tell me how to find Kursed so I can kill her and get back to my life." Wolf grunted, his eyes opening.

"Simmer down Fox. I think the whiskey bottle can wait for you. We don't know much more than when you left Fara. Last we checked, she works exclusively for one of the war lords on this station, but I have no clue which. Leon is on the perimeter, sweeping sniffers away from us. Should give us some time to think of something. Ideas?" Fox was glaring around the room, unwilling to look at any of them.

"Simple, we kill each of them until they tell us where she is. Then we kill her." Fara stared at him, confused. Even wolf, who was usually insanely calm, seemed surprised.

"Fox, each warlord has a small army behind them. We have six pilots. We can't fight an army with that. It would be…" he suddenly stopped speaking. Fox's eyes were fixed on a point above Fara's shoulder, Wolf's on Miyu's chest, where a small red dot was dancing.

* * *

><p>Fox grabbed Miyu and pulled her off the bench with him. There was the sound of shattering glass as a yellow lance shot through the air, right where Miyu had just been sitting. Wolf had kicked the table over, giving the small group cover as Fox leaned over it, firing his blaster pistol at the cloaked figure on the cat walks. People screamed as more sniper rounds ripped through the table and bench. Fay shrieked as one of them tore into her upper arm.<p>

"Damn it, Fox, try to get close enough to shoot her, I'll cover you!" Fox nodded to Wolf, all hatred forgotten in the sudden firefight as he unslung the carbine. Wolf popped up, firing a rapid flurry of blasts at the sniper. Fox sprinted forward, weaving through the crowd until he was crouched behind the bar. He popped up to fire, only to be forced to duck back down. Glasses exploded as sniper rounds slammed into them. Fox peeked over the bar just as a figure dropped onto the same catwalk as the cloaked sniper. The figure pulled a blaster off of each hip and fired at the sniper. Blue bolts erupted from the two weapons, fast enough that most people would've been caught in the flurry. But the sniper leapt off the back side of the cat walk, a cable in her hand. She swung toward the club, smashing through what little glass remained and landing on the near empty dance floor. Some sort of shockwave blasted away from her, knocking Fox to the floor. He jumped to his feet just in time to dodge the rushing swing of a long bow staff. He toke a second look at the blackened weapon, seeing the familiar shape and traces of gold and purple under the charring.

"Wh-what? But…" before he could say what he meant to say, the bulbous end of the weapon slammed into his temple, and Fox's vision went black.


	4. Chapter 3

Fox slowly became aware of himself as two people half dragged him down a hallway. His eyes began to crack open just as the two men stopped and slung him into a cell. An energy field formed between him and the hallway as he staggered to his feet. A familiar figure in the cell across from him drew his attention and he moved as close to the energy field as he dared. The grey furred figure was dressed in a Cornerian Flight suit. His floppy ears and short muzzle made him unmistakable to Fox.

"Bill!" one of the canine's ears twitched as Fox hollered again. "Bill, wake up!" he suddenly jarred awake and raised his head. One of his eyes almost couldn't open from the bruises around it.

"Fox! What are you doing here!?" he shrugged, placing his hands on his hips.

"I could ask you the same thing. Got captured trying to hunt down an assassin." Bill staggered to his feet, clutching his side.

"A lot of the pirates my squadrons were sent after, these Warlords controlled. They overwhelmed my squads and sent this strange ship after me. Looked more like a bird than any fighter I've tangled with. Shot me down. I don't know if anyone else made it." Fox cursed as he starting looking around his cell for a way out.

"I'm sorry Bill. We need to get out of here." Bill instantly responded, his voice weak.

"It's no use Fox. I've already tried." Fox stared at the defeated slump of his shoulders, bewildered.

"Bill, when have you ever been one to just give up?" he glared across the space between them, looking like he would be punching Fox if he could.

"Two weeks ago, I watched twenty three men and woman get slaughtered like animals. Every single one of them, was my friend. You can't possibly imagine what that is like Fox." Fox dropped his eyes, staring at the floor. Footsteps drew his attention and he moved to the back of the cell. Two guards with rifles leveled on his chest were standing just outside the cell. The energy field dropped and the burly canine barked an order to him.

"Move it lunk head. The boss wants a 'chat' with you." The gangly Primate toke the rear, prodding Fox in the back with his rifle as the canine led the way out of the prison.

* * *

><p>"How the hell do we get Fox out of there?!" Falco's voice echoed slightly in the makeshift command center Star Wolf had set up. The entire group was staring at the floor, almost as if they were ashamed. Only Wolf seemed to be unaffected by the situation.<p>

"If you will just shut up for five minutes Falco." Falco grunted as he leaned back into the chair he was in. Wolf was about to continue when the door suddenly slid open. Katt marched through almost instantly speaking.

"I hope whatever plan you have has use for one more. And you should hide your little base better Wolf." He grunted at her as he turned his attention back to the hologram before them. It was of one of the three main towers in the city, where one of the Warlords was keeping Fox.

"Room could be made. Now as I was…" Falco suddenly cut across him, practically launching out of his seat.

"Oh so we are taking on tramps now!" Katt glared at him as Leon snapped at Falco. Leon was a green lizard with very small beady eyes and a very curly tail. Falco and himself had been rivals almost since the reformation of the Star Fox team.

"What, Bird boy feeling useless now?" Falco's hand was dropping to his blaster.

"oh, I'll show you what it is to be useless lizard boy!" Leon launched toward Falco, only to be restrained by Wolf. Falco was about to swing at his now exposed gut when Fara slammed her foot into Falco's own gut. Falco doubled over, almost missing what Fara said.

"Everyone, settle down! We either we work together and save Fox, or we leave him for god knows what! Do I make myself clear?!" the entire group nodded as one. Wolf let go of Leon as he finally continued.

"As I was saying, we will have to do this perfectly, otherwise, we will all be dead. Falco, Fara, you will attack the tower with your Arwings, distract their forces and blast a hole in the tower here. That will allow a civilian shuttle to take myself, Miyu and Fay into the structure. Katt, Leon, I want you set up on this cat walk with Anti-Material rifles. Those should punch through the windows. From there, plan is simple. We find Fox, and get him out while the snipers cover. We'll swing the shuttle by and pick up the snipers. Once done, we land in the hanger, jump in our fighters, and get the hell out of dodge. Am I clear?" The holograph image followed what he said almost to a tee.

"Alright fine. Just tell me when." Falco crossed his arms as he leaned into one of the corners. The others all agreed one by one until Wolf finally spoke again.

"Alright, everyone, move your fighters to the hanger that Fara rented, then we go." He shut the projector off as he stepped out of the room. Falco waited for the others to leave before he finally followed Fara out. He grabbed her arm as he stopped, getting her attention.

"Why the hell was Fox anywhere near Wolf?" she smirked as she spoke, clearly undisturbed by the harsh tones in Falco's voice.

"I asked Fox to help me take down a bounty hunter. Wolf is a good friend of mine, and has more information on Kursed than I ever managed to get on my own. And he now has his own reason to take her down. Kursed killed Panther Caroso this morning. Now come on." she waved him on and he split off, going to the hanger his Arwing was stored in.

* * *

><p>The self-deemed lord of death stood in his massive office, staring out at the city beyond. He turned his attention back to the room at large as Matheson marched in. Matheson was a lean feline with a brilliant orange coat and black stripes, with the exception of the almost pure white running from his lower jaw and down his neck.<p>

"Gage, I have the serum, my lord." He grunted as he responded to his closest lieutenant.

"Matheson. The only man unafraid to use my real name. Are you sure it will work on her?" the feline bowed his head slightly as he spoke.

"Yes. Dr. Harris believes it will. There could be a problem with her telepathy, if she ever manages to dig into someone's mind who knew her, but we believe, due to the circumstances, and the fact that most of her memories are currently missing, it should not be a problem." Gage sat behind his desk, clasping his hands together and resting them on it.

"Alright, please, invite her in." Matheson moved toward the door speaking quickly.

"At once, my lord." The door opened and Gage could faintly hear Matheson's voice, but not clearly enough that he could know what was said. Kursed walked in, her ever present veiled hood in place.

"You wanted to see me, lord Death?" he smiled as he gestured to her to sit.

"Yes, about your payment for the McCloud job." He politely waited for her to sit before he continued. "I hear you have been having trouble sleeping lately?" she nodded, shortly and briskly. "I would like to offer you a serum, one that will help you sleep from now on. Are you interested miss?"

"Yes, very interested." Gage waved Matheson forward, Matheson holding the syringe out to her.

"Then here you go. Now, you will want to take it now, before it decays." She rolled her sleeve up, revealing her blue furred arm without hesitation. Matheson pulled the cover off the needle and carefully slipped it into one of her veins. She tensed when it entered, clearly bothered by it.

"I am told that this serum burns worse than most medicines, but that it is highly effective. It should also be already working." He pulled the needle out as she began to writhe in pain. A scream followed that seemed to split through their skulls, as if they were feeling the pain as well. She slumped into the chair as she finally stopped. Her hand slowly reached up to her veil, gently feeling it before she spoke.

"W-Where am I? Who am I?" Gage let a smile cross his face, knowing the drug had done its job perfectly.

"Relax Kursed, you are an assassin who works solely for me. You have been given a serum to help you remember that. Matheson here will show you back to your room, and explain to you what happened." The confused woman nodded and stood, following Matheson through it. An evil grin slid across his face as soon as she had left the room.


	5. Chapter 4

Bill stirred awake, his entire body feeling like one throbbing bruise, as footsteps drew his attention. The same two guards were marching a now battered and semi-conscious Fox down the hallway. They tossed him into his cell as Bill moved to the front of his own. As soon as the two guards were out of earshot, Bill whispered across the gap.

"Fox, can you hear me!?" Fox suddenly stood up, no longer looking semi-conscious, if anything, more alert than Bill had ever seen him.

"I've got us a way out, you just gotta trust me. Next time they come to torture me, I'll break us out." Bill shook his head slightly, a faint grin spreading on his face.

"I should'a known you wouldn't have given in that easily." The two of them sat down to wait, boredom setting in instantaneously.

* * *

><p>Fox suddenly jumped to his feet as the building shook and vibrated, almost as if it was being rocked with explosions. Bill staggered onto his own feet as weapons fire could be heard outside. Another explosion rocked the room as the main doors were breached. The guards shrieked as they collapsed, blaster burns on their chests. The energy fields on their cells dropped and Fox stepped out, almost running straight into Wolf.<p>

"Hey Fox. Here." He held out Fox's Carbine and his blaster pistol. Fox tossed the pistol to bill, who caught it and instantly readied it, one hand supporting the other. Wolf led the way back to the doorway, where Miyu and Fay were trading shots with unknown enemies. Fay was keeping both hands on her pistol, but seemed utterly terrified. Miyu on the other hand, was perfectly calm, and if anything, was enjoying herself as she one handed her modified pistol. Fox and Wolf shot through the doorway into a large atrium. There were at least seven guards in the room, caught off guard by the suddenness of Fox and Wolf's appearance. Fox pounded rounds into the four on his side of the room as Wolf shot the last three on his side. The other three started to march out, just as a laser blast lanced through the room, slamming into Bill's thigh. Fox and Wolf fired back at the two solders that had just entered the room as Fox shouted.

"Fay, help him, Wolf, covering fire, Miyu, take point and lead us out!" Fox watched as a pair of rounds from his carbine pounded a guard into the wall. Wolf slid behind a couch as he fired down the hallway, Miyu ran down a different hallway as Fay half-dragged Bill after her. Fox trotted after them, quickly catching up to Miyu. "Where are the other's?" she shrugged as she leaned around a corner, checking if it was clear.

"They're fine, providing cover outside. The only thing you should be worried about is getting out of here." Fox aimed down a hallway, covering the others as they passed. A pair of guards rushed into the hallway. Both dropped as Fox fired rounds into their chests. Wolf patted his shoulder and fox trotted after them. They clambered into a shuttle, Wolf dropping into the pilot's seat.

"Everyone aboard?!" Fox glanced around, seeing a group of guards rushing the shuttle. One of them had a rocket launcher. The guard raised the weapon, but before he could fire, a bright red lance shot through the glass and punched through his chest. The guards were easily being cut down by at least two snipers.

"Go Wolf!" the door sealed and the shuttle lurched out of the building. Fox fought his way to the front and dropped into the co-pilot seat.

"Still want to shoot me pup?" Fox glared at him as he placed the blaster so it was pointing at him, flicking the safety on.

"I'm debating it." Wolf glanced at the safety before speaking, easily guiding the craft through the city.

"Well warn me when you decide." Fox dropped the weapon into his lap as the craft came to a stop and hovered. The hatch opened and two figures leapt in, one of them already shouting.

"Go!" Fox shot up at the sound of her voice.

"Katt! When the hell did you join up!" she smiled and pulled Fox into a hug, both of them nearly falling over as wolf gunned the engines.

"When you decided to get your ass captured. Good to see you out of that bar Fox." He smirked as he staggered back into the copilot's seat.

"What's the plan Wolf?" he barely moved as he responded.

"We make for the fighters, then run to Fachina. It's the closest planet. We know who our goal is now." Fox nodded absently as he watched the buildings whip past. Suddenly, they were in space. Wolf swung the craft around and landed in the same hanger Fox had. Fox followed Katt out, who half dragged Bill to the Cat's Paw.

"Where's Fara?" Wolf responded as he climbed into his Wolfen.

"She and Falco are already airborne. They are meeting us outside." Rage boiled through Fox's veins at the sound of Falco's name. Both his fists clenched as he moved toward his fighter.

* * *

><p>Kursed keyed up her communication systems, her fingers moving across so many unfamiliar controls that she somehow knew exactly how to operate.<p>

"Who did you say these guys were again?" the deep voice she had awaken to came across the radio.

"They are murderers. Countless deaths have been linked to them, including my security staff. One in particular should interest you, given he is the one who caused the accident that lost you your memory. He flies a blue clad Arwing. Good luck out there, Kursed." She wondered how she got that name. Surely, her parents hadn't named her that. She lifted the fighter off the hanger floor and shot out into space. She didn't fully understand how, but she knew exactly how to make the ship do exactly what she wanted. She brought up a screen, selecting the anti-fighter lasers that she knew had been built into the nose of the craft. The red blips on her radar drew closer and closer until she could physically see all eight enemy fighters.

_"Oh shit that thing is fast. I'm engaging!"_ Kursed was bewildered at the strangely familiar voice.

"Am I hearing the enemy's radio?" she heard another voice, also strangely familiar.

_"Fox, we need to get out of here! Do you not see those fighters backing it up?"_ her own team mate spoke as friendly fighters approached behind her.

"No, you're a telepath, remember?" only one of the enemy fighters had turned around.

_"Damn it Wolf, none of us will make it if that thing keeps coming. Katt, get Bill out of here, Wolf, lead the others to distract those fighters while I deal with that ship!" _all but one of the fighters began to roll around as a feminine voice spoke.

_"And let you deal with it alone? No, I'll help you."_ She tried to block them out as she targeted a strange craft she had never seen before. It looked a lot like an Arwing, but the wings were thicker and wider, with blue plates bending in front and down them that looked like feathers. The fuselage was longer and the G-diffusers were much larger. It juked and rolled away as she chased it, firing at it. The fighter juked and dodged as a new voice entered her mind that she knew belonged to the pilot in front of her.

_"Damn it Fox, that dinosaur looking thing is on me!"_ somehow, she knew how he was going to maneuver and dodge, and it had nothing to do with her telepathy.

_"Oh shut your damn beak Falco! I'm almost there. Huh, that thing looks almost like a cloud runner."_ An Arwing suddenly lanced past the fighter in front of her and fired at her. She rolled and juked, narrowly dodging the ship. Her head snapped around, seeing the blue color of the G-Diffusers. She banked her fighter around and shot after him. He juked and rolled, easily avoiding her shots. The fighter suddenly stopped and she dived, narrowly dodging it. She felt more than saw the other Arwing, selecting her massive anti-ship cannon running along the underside of her nose. Her fighter vibrated as the weapon fired. The red colored ship spun out of control, and fell toward the nearby planet.

_"Fara! Hold on babe, I'm coming!"_ one of the red and black fighters peeled away from the dogfight, following the doomed fighter. She slammed on her brakes, the blue Arwing narrowly dodging her ship. As soon as it had passed, she rammed her throttle forward and opened fire. She felt more than thought what he was going to do next as she tracked him. His fighter began to spin out of control as her fire tore pieces off.


	6. Chapter 5

Wolf fought to keep his fighter flying straight through the blizzard. His sensors showed Fara's rescue beacon only a couple of Kilometers away. The smoke from the crash site became visible in the distance. He guided the fighter to the ground, barely managing to not crash his fighter. The canopy whined open and he leapt out, shielding his eyes from the snow.

"Fara! Fara!" he saw her stumble into the snow, clutching her sides.

"Wolf!?" she staggered toward him and fell to her knees. Wolf rushed forward and wrapped his arms around her.

"Are you alright Fara?" she burrowed herself deeper into his arms, shivering.

"Yeah, just f-f-friggan c-cold." He smiled and moved her back to his Wolfen, helping her climb into the seat while he sealed the canopy. There was a first aid and survival kit in his cargo bay that he pulled out, dropping a seismic probe in the snow. There was a faint pop as a map suddenly displayed of the nearby area. Wolf found a large cave nearby, it's opening under a short cliff. He waited a few minutes for Fara to warm up before he tapped on the canopy. She opened it and he was instantly speaking.

"Send a message to everyone else, then set this fighter as a beacon. This storm is only going to get worse, there's a cave nearby that we can take shelter in!" she nodded, doing as he said. She finally climbed out, putting the fighter in stand by and sealing the canopy behind her.

"All done. Lead the way." Wolf smirked as he trudged through the snow. After a few dozen meters, he dropped a beacon. He did so three more times before he finally reached the cave. The heater he had in the survival kit hummed to life as they huddled together, practically sitting on it. "If it wasn't so damned cold, I'd think this was rather romantic." Wolf laughed as he pulled her closer.

"You find crash landing romantic?" she smirked, her eyes staring into his.

"Only when you rush in to save me. Besides, that was gentle compared to some of my landings." Wolf and Fara huddled together as the other Pilots slowly trickled in, Bill's leg getting treated by Fay. Finally, Fox marched in, shaking snow from his fur and duffel bag.

"Damn, I forgot how cold it gets here." Wolf smirked as he stood, wrapping the blanket Katt had brought tightly around Fara.

"Hey Fox, you make it down okay?" he nodded as he spoke.

"Yeah, crashed a couple of clicks south. That, well, Cloud Runner shot me down too. Anyone else still missing?" Wolf nodded, and was about to speak when Falco marched into the cave, shaking snow off of himself.

"Damn it, I hate the cold. Why couldn't we have run to a tropical planet?" Fox was snarling, and before Wolf could react, he had spun and slammed his fist into Falco's jaw. Falco was sent sprawling to the floor. "What the hell was that for McCloud?!" Falco was glaring up at Fox, wiping blood from the corner of his beak.

"You know damn well what it's for!" Miyu helped him to his feet as he spoke.

"Dude, I helped save your life, twice!" Fox shoved past Wolf, moving deeper into the cave.

"Yeah? And what if I don't want your fucking help!?" Falco sighed as he spoke.

"This is about Krystal isn't it?" something clicked in Wolf's mind as Fox responded.

"You killed her Falco!" he rolled his eyes stepping closer to Fox as he shouted back.

"To save your life! She was going to kill you!" Fox's voice suddenly became dangerously quiet as he snarled at Falco.

"And you should have let her." Everyone in the room was stunned as Fox moved deep into the cave and sat down on a rock, facing away from the group. Only Katt didn't seemed shocked by his statement, a pained expression crossing her face.

* * *

><p>Fox reached into the pocket of his jacket, shocked when he felt something inside. He pulled the item out, realizing it was a photo, folded in half. Curious, Fox unfolded the image, his heart leaping into his throat. It was a picture of him and Krystal, sleeping with each other on one of Sauria's beaches just a couple of months after the Aparoid threat. Falco had ambushed them and taken the photo. He sighed as he stared at the blue vixen, feeling hollower inside than he had ever felt in his life.<p>

"Hey Fox, what's that?" Miyu startled him when she spoke, and he quickly hid the photo. She sat down beside him as he responded.

"It's nothing. Just an old wrapper." She smirked and playfully punched his arm.

"Your tears say otherwise. Plus, I saw enough of it to know it was a photo." Fox smirked as he glanced at her.

"That bad huh?" she nodded, her hands clasped together, elbows resting on her knees.

"Yeah. May I?" she was held out one of her hands to him. Fox gave the Photo one last look before he handed it to her. She stared at for a second before she spoke. "She is gorgeous. Or was. I'm sorry, she clearly meant a lot to you." Fox nodded as she handed the photo back, fresh tears flowing out of his eyes. "May I ask how she died?" Fox gulped, trying to think of where to start. Miyu suddenly started to stand up as she spoke. "I'm sorry, I really shouldn't have asked." He stopped her as he spoke.

"No, it's okay. I just don't know where to start. I guess about two and a half years ago, I kicked her off the Star Fox team. I just didn't want her to get hurt. She joined with Star Wolf. About six months later, me and Falco were on and escort job when Wolf's team attacked. Krystal and I got into a dogfight, and I hesitated when I learned it was her. She disabled my ship, and was swinging in for a final pass, aiming to kill me when Falco killed her." Miyu, had tears forming in her own eyes as Fox finished. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a hug. He wrapped his own arms around her, no longer trying to stop tears from flowing.

"That's horrible! Look, I know I'm not really the comforting type, but I'm here for you if you need anything, okay Fox?" he nodded and she pulled away from him, just enough to be able to see his face. "That scar on your stomach, she caused it, didn't she?"

"Yes. Thank you Miyu. You're the first person I've ever talked to about this, honestly." She smiled and pulled him close again. Strange thoughts whipped through Fox's mind, curious as to why he just told this random woman something he couldn't talk to any of his friends about.

"Anytime Fox. You did save my life back there, I think a little support is the least I can do." A third voice joined them and Fox looked up to see Fara standing over them, a pair of coffee mugs in her hands.

"Miyu, may I speak to Fox, alone?" she nodded and trotted over to where Katt was passing the coffee out. "Here Fox, I thought you wouldn't mind some." He accepted the mug and toke a sip of the steaming hot liquid.

"Thanks. What did you want to talk to me about?" she sat where Miyu had just been sitting.

"It's about Krystal. I know you want to hate Wolf for her death, but Wolf tried to stop her from killing you. She didn't listen to him. I just want you to not blame him. Please." Fox glanced at her, staring into her eyes for a second.

"You love him, don't you." She shriveled slightly, her tail flicking behind her.

"I don't know. I want to say I do, but, I don't know. Wolf isn't what he was before the Aparoid threat. He nearly died, and it changed him, a lot." Fox glanced over his shoulder at Wolf, who was joking with Fay and surprisingly, Bill.

"I can see that. And I want to blame him for letting her join his team, for taking her with, but something about the way he treats me, he hates himself for it, doesn't he?" she nodded as silence fell between them. She slowly stood back up and shivered.

"I'm going to go back over there. It's too cold here." Fox grabbed her arm before she could walk away.

"I don't know if I will ever be able to trust Wolf, but as long as you are happy with him, I'll do whatever it takes to help you two along." She smiled before she walked away, headed back to the small group. Fox stared at the photo as more tears flowed out of his eyes. "I'm so sorry Krystal."


	7. Chapter 6

Kursed sealed the door to her room and locked it. She made sure the com line was off before she stood in front of the mirror. All she saw was the black armored figure, shrouded in a black cloak and hooded veil. The only spot of color was the turquoise eyes. She shakily reached up and untied the veil, letting it drop to the desk as she dropped the hood as well. She was shocked at her own face, the blue fur, and the blue hair in a tight knit bun. She carefully released the hair, seeing it fall well past her shoulders. Without the veil and hood, she was really quite beautiful. She slowly stripped the rest of her clothes off, seeing what looked almost like tattoos in her fur. He had a small item around her neck, almost like a necklace, and she pulled it off to look at it. It was maybe four centimeters wide, and was shaped like a vulpine head with wings on either side. The small piece of metal was blackened and burned, but traces of its sky blue paint still remained.

_She stared down at the blue metal emblem in her hands, before looking up at the newly refurbished dreadnaught floating high above her._

_"You don't have to stay if you don't want to." She glanced at them man, somehow unable to see his features._

_"Of course I'm staying. Who wouldn't want to be a part of Star Fox!?"_

Kursed jerked back as the images flashed through her mind. The charred Star Fox emblem clutched tightly in her hand felt like it had been of much importance to her. She slipped it back over her head and watched it drop back onto her chest. Her eyes dropped back to the vanity where she noticed a strange rod on the armor she had stripped out of. She pulled it off and felt an electric charge flow through her into it, almost as if it was alive. She felt it was much more than a charred piece of metal, and the second the thought crossed her mind, the rod extended into a full length bow staff, one end a spear point, the other a bulbous oval with a turquoise gem cemented in it.

"Wow!" she couldn't help but speak as she admired the weapon. She gave it a few swings and twirls, feeling familiar with it already. She shrugged as she shrunk it back down. Her body absently put all of the armor and clothing back on as her mind bounced back to the images she had seen. Who was that man she had been with? She decided to open her comm terminal just as someone called her. She answered it, seeing the image of the man she had woken up too.

"Ah, Kursed. I must ask, how are you feeling?" a strange feeling surged into her mind, one that felt as if he was lying, like he had a much darker motive.

"I'm fine. I never re-learned your name, sir." He smiled, but again, she had the strange feeling that it wasn't real.

"Gage, that is what you may call me." A voice, similar to his was suddenly echoing inside her own head.

_Good, the serum is working. With time, she will mold into the ultimate tool._ She was suddenly glaring at him, knowing it was his thoughts she heard.

"You are the one who took away my memory, aren't you?" he stared at her, his face suddenly terrified.

"No, why would you accuse me of such?" she smiled, knowing he wouldn't see it.

"I was just seeing how you would react. May I request a meeting?" he breathed a sigh of relief as she spoke.

"Why yes, come on down to my office." She killed the call and made sure the staff was tucked into its slot on her wrist before she stalked out of the door.

* * *

><p>Fox stopped to catch his breath. They all had been working since the day before, trying to unbury their fighters. After the three days it took for the storm to blow over, they dug Katt's fighter out of the snow and sent her to Aquas to find Slippy Toad, an ex-member of the Star Fox team who was a brilliant mechanic. His radio suddenly crackled to life with Miyu's voice.<p>

"Hey Fox, Guess who's back? And she brought us a fighter hauler!" Fox smiled as he kept digging, managing to finish digging the charred hull of his Arwing out of the snow.

"Finally! My fighter is ready to be pulled. Just finished digging her out." Miyu laughed over the radio as she responded.

"Alright. Well, we are just going to pack up the gear here and dock the flyable fighters. Should be there in a few minutes to pull you out." Fox smiled as he settled into the pit around the wreck of his fighter to wait for the ship. The time seemed to fly by in seconds. Fox glanced up as the ship drifted over head. It looked like a giant sphere. Two engines and a tail boom split off the rear of the vessel. The tail had twelve tubes sticking out at forty-five degree angles. Seven off these tubes, had fighters docked to them. Slippy's voice blasted over the radio as the ship lowered down, blasting snow around.

"Hey Fox! Long time no see!" Fox smirked as a magnetic clamp lowered from one of the tubes that Fox quickly hooked onto the hull of his fighter.

"Hey Slippy. Where did you get a fighter hauler? Hooked up down here." Slippy laughed over the radio as the fighter was pulled out of the snow, the blackened hull looking like it was going to crumble at any moment.

"Alright, let me drop you the ladder, then we'll go get Fara's fighter. And I built it myself. I call her the Tadpole." Fox smirked as he grabbed onto the rope ladder and hauled himself up into the ship. It was blissfully warm inside.

"Hey Foxie, your stuff has already been moved to a cabin. I'll show you!" Fox gave Miyu a smile and followed her. They stopped at a door near the end of a hallway, Miyu gesturing inside. Fox glanced at the name painted on the side of the door, realizing it was his own. He stared at the door next to his, seeing the name painted beside it. _Krystal_.

"I'm guessing Falco and peppy have labeled cabins too?" Miyu nodded as Fox stepped through the door. The cabin was small, and yet something about it seemed comfortable. He packed his stuff away before he marched out and through the door at the end of the hallway. The door opened onto a bridge that Slippy and another toad that Fox didn't recognize were manning.

"Ah hey Fox! How do you like the cabin?" Fox gave him a smile while he looked over all of the controls.

"It's really nice Slippy. You were building this for the Star Fox team, weren't you?" He happily nodded as Fox continued. "I'm guessing you didn't hear it was disbanded. Or about Krystal." Slippy looked confused as he spoke.

"No, what happened to Krystal?" Fox's head dropped into his hands as he spoke, his elbows resting on one of the consoles.

"She's dead, Falco killed her." there was a gasp from the other frog in the room, Fox finally paying attention to her. "And who are you?" she held her hand out for Fox to shake as she spoke.

"I'm Amanda, Slippy's fiancée." Fox was stunned for a second, barely able to think.

"I what?! Congratulations Slippy! That's, wonderful!" he smiled as the two of them clasped hands.

"Thanks Fox. Well, we gotta go. Fighter to recover." Fox nodded and stepped off the bridge, headed back for his cabin. Once inside, he locked the door and dropped onto the bed, simply staring at the ceiling until he finally drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p>Miyu bit her lip as she approached the doorway. She gently knocked, hoping he would answer. When there was no response, she knocked again, much harder this time. The door suddenly slid open, revealing Fox, looking exhausted.<p>

"What is it Miyu?" she smiled as she responded.

"I just want to talk to you. Do you mind if I come in?" he stepped out of her way and she sat down on the bed, looking up at him. "So Slippy took a look at your fighter. It's totaled, same as Fara's. Scrap on them will pay for almost the cost for a new fighter, but only for one of you. Just thought I would warn you." He nodded as he spoke.

"I have another Arwing, just need to swing by Corneria. Was that all?" she shook her head, almost instantly speaking.

"I was hoping that I could convince you to come with me to dinner. Fay cooked, and believe me when I say this, she knows what she is doing." He dropped into his office chair, barely looking at her as he responded.

"Not hungry. Sorry." She sighed, her eyes drifting to her feet.

"Fox, you need to eat. It's been almost two days, and none of us have seen you leave this cabin." She glanced at him, hoping he had changed position, but he continued to stare at the desk.

"No." she stood up and grabbed his ear.

"Then you leave me no choice." He squealed as she dragged him out of the room by his ear until he finally managing to stand up, rubbing the ear.

"Ow, why the hell did you do that?!" she laughed as he followed her down the stairs.

"Well, it got you to follow me, didn't it?" he grimaced at her as she grinned.

"Yeah, it did." They stepped into the empty galley, everyone else having already eaten and left. Only Fara and Wolf remained, quietly talking in one of the corners. They both grabbed trays of food and sat at a table, across from each other. Miyu didn't hesitate to start eating, knowing she had a wonderful meal in front of her. Fox merely prodded at it with his fork.

"Come on Fox, just try a bite." He finally dug his fork in and put some of the food in his mouth. After the first bite, he was suddenly eating like he was ravenous.

"You don't lie, she does know how to cook." Miyu smiled as he gazed dreamily at the counter where more food sat.

"I'll never lie to you Fox. Now go get some more you buffoon!" he smiled to her as he leapt to his feet, double loading his tray, wolfing the food down just as fast as the first tray. She grabbed both of their empty trays and dropped it into one of the sinks before sitting back down.

"Now was that so bad?" he grunted and glared at her, the barest trace of a smile at the corners of his mouth.

"No. thank you Miyu." She smiled and felt blood rushing to her cheeks, her tail flicking madly behind her.


	8. Chapter 7

Kursed guided the Cloud Runner down onto the landing pad and gently set it down. She powered the fighter down and hesitated to lower her seat, pulling the brunt emblem back out. She had remembered tossing it into the fire, but she still had no idea why. The seat finally ground down to small cabin and she climbed out of the seat, her voice quiet as she spoke.

"Matheson, were here. Katina, just as you asked." He stirred awake from the small bed in the main cabin of the craft. The ship had been dreadfully cramped with two people in it. He sat up, staying quiet for a few seconds.

"Miss Kursed, why don't I stay on with you for a while? As your handler. I'll sort out contracts, feed you intelligence, whatever you need. All you would need to worry about is being an assassin." She debated for a second. After killing his old boss, he would need work. And she knew he was highly skilled at acquiring information.

"Done, we split the pay, seventy-five, twenty-five." He held out his hand to her, clearly willing to accept it. "Alright, I'll give you thirty, just because I can't cook for anything." He laughed as she accepted his hand, shaking it.

"Well, shall we?" she returned his smile as they walked down the ramp together.

* * *

><p>"So this idiotic rookie yells 'Leeeroooooy jeen' and bam, he's down, doesn't even finish what he was yelling." Fox laughed as Miyu continued her story, entranced by her. Fox fought back laughter as he responded.<p>

"Seriously, damn, poor kid, alright now I feel bad for laughing at him." She grinned as she spoke, clearly holding back her own laughter.

"Nah, don't, he survived, got out of bounty hunting though." Fox chuckled as he took a drink of his coffee. Fara marched over to them as she spoke.

"Hey Fox, we're minutes from Corneria." She glanced at Miyu, a small smirk spreading across her face.

"Alright, I'll be on the bridge shortly. Later Miyu." Fox smiled as he waved to her, and she returned it. Fara followed Fox speaking to him as they walked toward the bridge.

"Got word that the 'Lord of Death' as he called himself, is dead. Killed by Kursed, or so we think. Some of his guys were killed by blunt force trauma, one was frozen, and one had his entire upper half burned to a crisp. Most had been stabbed. He was the one who had her capture you." Fox glanced at her, knowing an object that could have done all of that.

"Hmm, alright. So we are back at step zero." She sighed as they came off the stairs on the command deck.

"Yup. So, I see that you and Miyu seem to have taken to each other." Fox shrugged, not visibly paying any attention to her.

"She's fun to be around. It's not like I can go hit the local bar, now can I?" Fara smirked as she responded.

"Really? Cause passing the time is not what's on her mind." Fox couldn't help but smile as he stopped and faced her.

"Alright miss nosy, go pester her or Wolf or something." Fara playfully punched his shoulder before trotting back toward the galley. Fox strode onto the bridge just as Slippy brought the ship out of Warp. Corneria suddenly loomed before them as the ship decelerated. Slippy gestured to Fox and the radio and Fox grabbed the microphone. "This is Fox McCloud of the transport ship Tadpole to Cornerian Air Control, request landing vectors for Corneria City." The bridge was filled with the crackling voice of one of the many traffic controllers.

"This is Cornerian Space tower Five, please state your intended landing point." Fox almost instantly responded.

"Private landing pad, Cornerian Interplanetary Space port. I.D. number two-Five-seven-six-three." The voice came back again as Fox shifted slightly.

"Rodger that, please state the clearance code for the landing pad." Fox racked his brain, trying to remember the code.

"Sierra-tango-alpha-romeo dash foxtrot-oscar-x-ray." There was a lag in his response as he undoubtable checked the code.

"Rodger that Tadpole, we are sending your approach and landing vectors now. Any straying from the course or velocities will be followed with the immediate arrest of yourself and confiscation your ship. Please enjoy your stay Mr. McCloud." Fox smirked as Slippy brought the ship on course. Although Slippy may not have been the best combat pilot, no one was better at following a flight path, or flying in formation. He was usually off by centimeters at most. Even some of the best pilots were sometimes off by several hundred meters with larger vessels such as the Tadpole.

"Hey Fox, I heard from Fara that you are hunting a bounty hunter. If you want, me and Amanda can hang around. Help out if you want." Fox laughed as he responded.

"Well Slippy, I wouldn't care, but the one you need to ask is Fara, not me. She's the one who's in charge." Slippy chuckled as the ship started to enter the atmosphere.

"Funny, she said the same thing about you. So I guess you guys have a jump ship now." Fox grinned at Slippy.

"Thanks Slippy. Once we're ground side, go scope out the supply hanger. I stored all of the Star Fox equipment. I gotta hit the other hanger for an Arwing." Slippy nodded as the ship stopped shaking, dropping into the atmosphere over the ocean. Slippy easily guided the ship to the landing pad Peppy had purchased with the commissions from the Aparoid threat. Fox strode off the ship as soon as the cargo ramp had dropped.

* * *

><p>Miyu ran to catch up with Fox, who was already halfway to one of the two hangers he inherited when he disbanded the Star Fox team. She suddenly hollered as she reached the bottom of the ramp.<p>

"Fox, Wait up!" he turned at the sound of her voice, staying where he was. She slowed to a trot as she caught up to him.

"Hey Miyu. Need something?" she shook her head as she responded.

"Not really, just felt like going with you." Fox smirked as he started walking again. They entered the hanger and Miyu instantly noticed the third generation Arwing sitting at the front of the hanger. The craft had its wings folded almost straight back, and its G-Diffusers folded down for storage. The craft was clearly very well kept, and looked like it had just rolled off the factory floor. Fox marched past it to a large tarp covered object in the back of the hanger. Curious, Miyu started looking over the third generation Arwing.

"Fox, what's wrong with this fighter? I mean, it's in better condition than the one you flew earlier. She glanced up at him as he pulled the tarp off another fighter in the back of the room.

"Nothing. I just can't fly it." the fighter he had unveiled didn't look like any of the three Arwing Models she knew about. Although it's G-Diffusers were similar to the old second gen Arwings, the wings were wider and clearly weren't designed to move. Its cannons were still in the same spot as the other Arwing designs, but the nose was very different. Rather than the sharp point, it looked like a rectangular box that the end had been crimped closed with a vice.

"What is that?" Fox smirked as he responded.

"That, is a X02b. only one still in existence. Slippy built it off of the old X02's after we defeated Andross and his army. Heavier armor, little bit bigger fusion torch, better guns. Swapped the charge laser out for a missile rack though. The rack can be removed to be used as a cargo bay too. But what really makes this thing shine is its reliability. I could fly this thing under combat duress for months without needing to retune the thrusters or the G-Diffusion system." He tapped a few keys on his wrist computer and the fighter hummed to life, its dusty canopy lifting up smoothly.

"Wow. How long have you had this ship?" Fox smirked as he climbed into the cockpit and started checking its systems.

"Seven years. Would have lost it with our other two when the Great Fox was destroyed, but we had loaned it to Space Dynamics when we bought the third generations. They returned it almost a year ago, and told me they are working on releasing an updated version of it." Miyu grunted as she looked up and down the battered hull of the fighter, not at all impressed by it.

"Surely that third Gen is better?" Fox nodded as he continued going through different flight systems.

"Yeah, a little bit. Has a little bit more speed and firepower. The third gens are assault fighters. This is a multi-role fighter. The X02's are interceptors. But, with a little bit of modern tech, this gals guns will be just as good as the third gens. Won't be able to stop on a dime or hover like them, it's G-diffusers just counter inertia." He shooed her back as the canopy closed and three thrusters shoved the craft into the air, one under the nose, and one on each of the flat bottoms of the G-diffusers. She opened the hanger door as he gracefully piloted the ship around the other Arwing and out the open door. Miyu trotted back to the Arwing still trying to figure out why he wouldn't fly it. She found a name under the canopy and her jaw dropped as she read it.

_Krystal._ It suddenly clicked in her mind why he wouldn't fly that Arwing. And why he took such good care of it. Miyu trotted out of the hanger and into the bright sunlight to watch Fox put the old Arwing through stress testing, making it dance across the sky in maneuvers she had never dreamed were possible.


	9. Chapter 8

Fox sighed as he put the panel back on his old Arwing. One of the G-Diffusers had failed while he was doing stress testing, although it wasn't entirely surprising, given the craft hadn't been properly maintained for almost four years. He had done his best with the parts on hand to bring the old gal back up to speed, but a few of the systems still looked shifty to him. He finally set all of the tools back in the bench and slid it back against the hanger wall. He double checked that his wallet was in his back pocket before he slipped out of the hanger and onto Corneria's busy streets. He walked for what seemed like hours, not really paying attention to where he was, until he finally found a cozy little spot in a park overlooking the vast oceans that surrounded the city. He sat down, letting his thoughts race, the same hollow feeling he had felt any time he was sober settling back in. it was almost as if he wasn't even alive, just a corpse that hadn't caught on that it's soul was gone.

"Hey Fox." He jumped at the sound of Katt's voice, the black furred feline slipping into the seat beside him. He sighed and let his eyes fall away from her, unable to look her in the eye. "Ya know, when I saw you working with so many people, I thought you were doing better." Fox still didn't look her in the eye.

"We both know what you thought you stopped last year. But what you thought you saw, and what was aren't the same." She sighed, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Fox, lie to yourself all you want, but don't lie to me." Memories stared to flash before his eyes. _Bright headlights, seeming almost like twin suns illuminated him in the stormy night. He made no attempt to get out of the way as the massive bus screeched toward him. Suddenly, an incredibly fast blur slammed into him, just barely tackling him out of the way of the bus. Blind rage consumed him and he punched her off of him, only to realize that he had punched Katt in his drunken rage._ "I know you were in that street on purpose, Fox." Her voice dragged him back to the present and he sighed.

"So what if I was?" Fox felt Katt's hand drop off of his shoulder as she sighed beside him.

"Fox, you lost someone you cared about, we all did." Fox felt anger start building in him, but he suppressed it the best he could.

"I died that day Katt. She never would have been on Star Wolf if it wasn't for me, she… she wouldn't be dead. Falco should've just let her kill me that day." Tears were stinging his eyes, emotions he hadn't even let himself feel in a long time flooding out.

"You don't mean that Fox." He finally looked at her, seeing the tears in her eyes as well. He nodded before he looked away from her.

"I really do mean it Katt." She pulled him into a hug, gently rubbing his back.

"Fox, we've been friends for years. Your life isn't over fox, you are strong, you'll get through this, just like you do everything else." He stood up, shrugging her off, and walked a few feet away, feeling the cool salty breeze blowing in from the ocean.

"I was only strong because I didn't know what I had to lose, and now it's gone. I can't expect you to understand, Katt." And with that, he strode off into the city, leaving Katt on the bench.

* * *

><p>Katt watched Fox's retreating back and sighed as she slipped off into her own memories. <em>It was a cold and rainy night as she trudged through the storm. Very few cars were on the roads, most of the roads being half flooded, and most people were choosing to stay inside. She pulled her soaked vest tighter around her chest and pulled on the hood, trying to bury her face deeper within. Light suddenly filled the street as a door across from her opened. She watched a man stumble out of the bar, a bottle in his hand. He seemed familiar somehow, but most of his features were swathed in darkness, impossible to make out. All she could tell, was that he had no jacket, just a t-shirt and cargos that had to already be soaked. Headlights down the street drew her attention down the road, and by the tim-e she has looked back at the man, he was swaying in the street, the bottle slipping from his hand as he faced the oncoming vehicle. Her eyes went wide as she took off toward him, already leaping into the air as the headlights illuminated the vulpine's orange and white fur. She slammed into him, feeling the bus clip her foot as they splashed onto the side walk. Excruciating pain shot through her foot as she lay on top of the man, seconds before a fist connected with the side of her face, sending her tumbling off her.<em>

_"What the fuck Katt!?" she clutched her ankle for a second, pain throbbing from her face at well. As soon as she was sure nothing was broken, she felt her face, the skin around her eye socket already swelling up._

_"I could ask the same of you Fox!" she watched as he tried to stumble to his feet, only to drunkenly fall back to the sidewalk. She tried to get to her feet herself, pain ripping through her foot the second she put weight on it. She let out a small whimper every time she stepped, staggering over too Fox and slinging one of his arms over her shoulder._

_"Come on Fox, my hotel isn't far." He didn't fight, clearly too drunk or lacking the will to speak. They stumbled along in the rain, her breath coming in ragged gasps before too long. She finally managed to stumble into her small hotel room, dropping a semi-conscious Fox onto the one bed. She dropped into the chair, pulling her pant leg up to see a mass of swelling formed around her ankle, making it almost twice the size it should be. She cursed and hobbled over to the bathroom, grabbing a towel before pulling ice from the freezer. The ice sent a blissful cooling feeling through her foot as she propped it up on the table. Fox was out cold on the bed and she watched him, seeing the image of him intentionally standing in front of the bus run through her mind over and over again._

Katt's wrist computer beeped and she startled from her memories. It had been almost fifteen minutes since Fox had left, and she decided that was well passed time to get back. She hefted his wallet in her hand before slipping it into her jacket pocket. _Well, at least now he can't go get drunk._ She sighed as she slowly made her way toward the headquarters building, the moon rising in the distance. The main room was dark when she walked in, assuming everyone had gone to bed. She was moving toward the hall that had her dorm when the main light suddenly flicked on. Startled, she spun around to see Fox standing next to the switch.

"Do you really think I didn't notice you taking my wallet?" she sighed and dropped down onto one of the many sofas.

"I had hoped it would take you longer." He moved over to her and held his hand out to her, palm up. She sighed and begrudgingly pulled the wallet out, dropping it into his waiting palm.

"Now don't ever try to steal from me again." She stood up, anger suddenly boiling just under her skin.

"I was NOT stealing from you. I was making sure your dumb ass didn't try to go hit a bar!" he threw a single glare over his shoulder before marching off down the hall, slipping into his room. She sighed and followed suit. She didn't instantly fall asleep, instead, slipping back into her memories.

_Katt walked into the old Star Fox HQ, her eyes sweeping the room for Fox, she spotted him, seemingly passed out on the couch, half a dozen beer bottles scattered around him. She couldn't help but sigh as she limped around the room, picking up all of the trash and garbage scattered across the room before sitting down in one of the chairs. She let her head drop into her hands, debating if she should wake him, or just leave a note._

_"Fox, I gotta go away for a while. I'm… trying to find someone, and my guy finally came through for me." She stood, about to go find some paper to write on when his voice startled her._

_"Who?" her eyes followed him as he shambled to the fridge, a disappointed expression appearing when he found it empty._

_"Falco." He grunted as he moved back to the couch, slumping back onto it._

_"Figures. You always run to him when something's wrong." She frowned at the sour tone in his voice, able to see the pain engulfing him._

_"I'll try to be back soon, okay?" he waved her off, not even looking at her._

_"Don't bother." Her eyes closed and she took a deep breath before she walked out, scared of leaving him there alone._


	10. Chapter 9

Miyu trotted out onto the tarmac, her new Heads Up Display dangling in her hand. Fox had been recommending her and Fay get them, although their Arwings were designed to not need them, the rigs still worked, and gave you added situational awareness. Fay was already out there, looking over her Arwing for any signs of wear. The one thing Fara had managed to actually teach them was how to repair and maintain their ships, although Fay showed a certain knack for it. Miyu waved to her as she passed beginning to look over her own fighter. It had only been a week and a half since they arrived, and they had only managed to get two solid flights up, due to much needed repairs being needed on Fox's Arwing, so she wasn't really worried about her fighter. She checked her watch and sighed, finally speaking to Fay.

"Alright, where the hell is he, he's late again." Almost as if on cue, she saw him shambling up to the landing pad. Although he had clearly showered and changed, Miyu could still smell the alcohol on him. She sighed as he closed his eyes and swayed on his feet for a few seconds. "Um, Fox, you sure you want to be flying with how hung over you are?" he waved her off and dropped into the pilot's seat of his Arwing. Fay shrugged at Miyu and the two of them climbed into their respective fighters. Miyu powered her fighter up, watching the holographic interface boot up. As soon as it did, she moved the slider that appeared higher, causing the craft to rise into the air. The only analogue style controls in the X-03 Arwings was the throttle, control yoke, and rudder pedals. All other functions were operated holographically. She gently pressed forward on the control yoke, tilting the nose of the fighter downward, and causing her fighter to gently drift forward. Although this was similar to fox's fighter, she did not have to touch the collective and she would stay airborne, fox on the other hand, would have to increase the collective and increase vertical thrust to not lose altitude.

"This is Fox McCloud, requesting orbital vectors for the Titan Orbital scrape yaaa-uuhn." Miyu couldn't help but giggle as he yawned. "Sorry Titan Orbital Scrap Yard for three single occupant fighter craft." In the gap between sending the transmission and the tower receiving it, Miyu powered on her radio.

"Late night drinking game got ya down?" she heard him grunt over the radio.

"Miyu, just shut up, I have enough of a headache as is." Miyu gritted her teeth, suddenly debating switching from training mode and putting a few rounds into the back of his fighter.

"Control to McCloud, transmitting data now. Fly safe." The data piped into her new HUD rig, a long blue arrow showing their flight path. She gently pulled back on the control yoke and eased the throttle forward, following Fox's lead as their fighters glided along the route. Within a few minutes, their fighters were slipping around the moon. Fox eased his fighter to a stop at the edge of the scrap yard they were using for training. The past two days, he had them disabling their cannons and ampping up their shields, then flying through the scrap as fast as they dared.

"Alright, make sure your craft is in training mode. This means your weapons will literally be just light, and won't affect you shielding, but your weapons disable when you're killed. I want you to split off in there, and duel each other." She sighed and watched Fay's Identify Friend or Foe tag change from friend to enemy. Her fist gently eased the throttle up and she guided the fighter into the debris. After a few seconds, Fox shouted into the radio.

"Go!" she rammed her throttle forward, all thought of being gentle gone. She smirked as she maneuvered through the debris, using a mixture of ruddering, pitching and the occasional roll to easily weave through the scrap. Fay's craft lit up on her scanners, a good distance above her. She looped onto her tail, instantly firing as Fay juked and dodged, finally rolling behind a piece of debris, out of Miyu's line of sight. Miyu shot after her, only to see her blip reappear on her tail.

"Smooth move Fay!" her own fighter started to juke as Fay fired a stream of unlinked training lasers at her. A few shots connected, but she was still in the fight. Miyu suddenly slammed on each of the pedals for a full second each, staggering it so she yawed off to the right before stopping and yawing back to the left. Fay, who had been following too closely to stop in time, shot past, letting miyu slip right onto Fay's tail. A handful of linked blasts later, and a kill chalked up on Miyu's HUD. The next few rounds went like this, as Fay learned to think faster and more abstractly, something Miyu had already learned from bounty hunting. After several rounds, the two of them were suddenly locked in a running battle, neither one able to gain the advantage long enough to beat the other. Finally, Fox's voice broke the radio silence.

"Alright both of you, weapons cold." She complied, bringing her fighter to a stop. His fighter was still visible on her sensors, since it was still sending friendly IFF codes to both of them. His fighter suddenly disappeared just after he entered the scrap yard, Fay's returning to a friendly tag. "Now, you two are going to duel me, two on one." Miyu instantly spoke up, bewildered.

"Whoa there, we got better fighters than you, we'll stomp you!" he laughed over the radio as Fay and Miyu glanced nervously at each other.

"Well then, you two should make short work of me then." She signaled fay to move forward with a hand signal, the two of them splitting apart to increase they're scanning area. After a few seconds, a red blip appeared near Fay and she was shouting.

"He's already on my tail, I can't shake him!" Miyu pushed herself to her limits, catching up in time for Fay to wink off the board. She managed to slip onto Fox's tail, but he was too quick for her to fully track. He was clearly actively manipulating all of his controls, including his collective, pulling off turns she would dare, and literally rolling through debris fields that he had a quarter of a second window that if he strayed out of in his timing, the craft would have wrecked, and yet, he did it over and over again. After a while, she began to think she wasn't chasing a master fighter pilot, but a living god of the air. She startled as her fighter tallied a confirmed hit on his fighter, just before he managed to flip around and score the kill on her.

"Holy shit! We couldn't even nick you! You are like a god in that fighter!" she could barely see his face in the space between them, but she could still see his grin.

"I'm good, but I aint no master. You still hit me a few times Miyu." No come on, that's it for today." Miyu nodded, falling in on his wing as they returned to Corneria.

* * *

><p>Fox marched out of the star port, double checking that he still had his wallet. It toke him several minutes of walking, and the sun was already setting, but he managed to find his usual bar. He walked in, examining the not quite clean tables and rowdy atmosphere. He ignored everyone in the bar, heading straight for the main bar and leaning up against it, waiting for the bartender. It took him a minute to stop by, but he was instantly friendly when he did.<p>

"Ah, McCloud, good to see you. What will it be tonight? The usual? Fox was about to nod when an arm shot around his throat, locking him in a choke hold, another hand on the back of his head. He tried to pull the arm off, only to find that whoever it was had used their other arm to brace it, so that any attempt he made to break the hold would just choke him out faster. The bartender opened his mouth to speak, but didn't as the person released him and none to gently shoved him onto a stool.

"That will be nothing for Mister McCloud tonight, he's leaving." Miyu took the space he had been standing in as she spoke, her attention focused on him. He was expecting anger to boil over at her at any second, but it never came.

"Yeah, says you and what army? You'll have to kill me to drag me out of here." He was turning back to the bar when he felt Miyu roughly grab his ear.

"I wouldn't count on that, sorry about this sir." She was already yanking on his ear, far harder than she had the last time. He couldn't help but squeal as she roughly dragged him out of the bar, followed by the most of the patrons and the bartender all laughing as the door shut. She finally let go of him and he straightened up, almost wanting to grin himself for reasons he couldn't quite explain. He tried his best to seem angry with her as he yelled, rubbing his still pulsing ear.

"What the hell are you doing Miyu?" she smirked and signaled him to follow her.

"Teaching you that there are better ways to spend your time than drinking yourself under a table." He finally let a small grin out, still confused at his own emotions. If it had been Katt or Fara dragging him out like that, he surely would've fought back more, and actually been angry with them.

"Alright, where are we going?" she smiled, tucking her hands into her jacket, and clearly letting her hips sway more than usual.

"Just a little café Panther used to talk about all the time. I met him before he joined Star Wolf, worked with him a little bit too." Fox shrugged at the explanation, not really caring. They were silent for a while, Fox intentionally staying silent. After a few blocks, she suddenly bumped her hip up against his, smiling at him. "Come on Fox, it's okay to talk."

"But that requires effort." She playfully punched his shoulder, making him smile. She gestured to an open air café by the water, just before leading him in. they sat near the water, overlooking a small natural looking beach, even though he knew it was man made, it still made an incredible view.

"Hello, I'll be your waiter for the evening, may I get you anything to drink?" Fox was about to ask for something alcoholic when she piped up.

"A big thing of the strongest coffee you have for him, he's had a long day. Just some water for me." The waiter smiled and walked away, Fox shooting a glare at her.

"I'm perfectly capable of ordering my own things." she chuckled as she glanced out at the waves.

"I know. I also knew you were about to order something with alcohol. Wasn't going to drag you from a bar so you could get drunk somewhere else, plus, I can tell just by looking at you, you're exhausted." He grunted, unwilling to look into her light blue eyes. He knew she was staring at him, but he did his best to ignore her. "You know, it doesn't take a telepath for me to read you like a book." He froze the second he heard the word telepath, feeling almost as if she had just stabbed him with a knife. A single tear slid down his cheek and he opened his eyes to see her staring at him, a worried expression on her face. "I'm sorry Fox, I probably should have worded that differently." Her hand slid across the table, wrapping her fingers around his and giving it a gentle squeeze. He looked away from her, about to pull his hand away when a memory echoed through his mind.

_"Fox, it's okay to morn Krystal's death, but you do nothing more than disgrace her memory by not trying to move on, to live."_ Peppy's words continued to echo around his skull for a few long seconds. _Maybe it is time to move on._ He rotated his hand, lacing his fingers with hers. Tears were still stinging his eyes when he finally spoke.

"Thank you Miyu. For pulling me out of there." She smiled, a look of relief crossing her face just as the waiter arrived.


	11. Chapter 10

Fara shook her head as Miyu and Fox parted ways, Miyu giving him a peck on the cheek before leaving. Miyu had been put in charge of purchasing food supplies for the group.

"Hey Fox, can I speak to you?" he startled as she spoke, smiling at her.

"Oh, hey Fara. Didn't see you there" she smirked as they walked back into the living area of the old Star Fox Headquarters.

"First, I talked to Bill, he got assigned to a new unit. He only has seven fighters at his command, but he now flies an Arwing X-02. And General Peppy has assigned his unit to a new anti-gang unit. Last words of his message were 'see you soon'" Fox nodded as they sat down in chairs, opposite of each other.

"Peppy wants him to be working with us. Good." Fara returned his smile.

"And when did you and Miyu start dating?" he suddenly stared at her, wide eyed. One of his hands rubbed the back of his head as he responded.

"Um, well, about a week after we got here. I thought she had told you." He winced and shied away from her, clearly preparing to be yelled at by her.

"Good. I'm happy for you two. Really. She has had a lot of bad luck when it comes to relationships, and well, whether you admit it or not, you need someone. After, well…" she hesitated as she debated whether she should use her name. "After Krystal." She saw the pain rip through his body at the sound of her name. but, at the same time, she notice a familiar twinkle in his eye that she hadn't seen since they themselves were dating

"Yeah. You're usually right." Fara smiled as she continued.

"Now, back to business, it's been weeks since we even had a whisper of Kursed. If we don't start accepting contracts, we won't be able to run our Arwings by this time next week. All of that flight training you put Fay and Miyu through, burnt through most of our accounts. Now I already have three contracts lined up, I want to know who you would send where." She shifted nervously, knowing he wanted out of mercenary work.

"Alright, shoot." She relaxed as she let her breath out.

"Okay, so first contract is a simple escort. Not through a real high risk area but they want the best. From here to Katina. They are providing the fuel and flight expenses. Second job is a simple sweep and clear, pirate base over in Meteo that the CDF want gone. And finally, some rich Katinian is going to be sending his daughter to Fortuna for a few days. He wants some less formal bodyguards that are still the best of the best." Fox stood up and started pacing, clearly thinking about what he was going to say.

"I'll take Miyu to Fortuna for this body guarding. You take Fay, Falco, and Slippy to the escort operation, and Wolf will take Leon and Katt to destroy the Meteo pirates. I'd take Leon or Wolf over Miyu, but they may cause some panic. Whereas, pirates may hold off on opening up on them. Having the ex-Star Fox members at the Escort may get them to squeeze more pay out of the escort gig. And I am never working with Falco again if I can help it." Fara nodded as she stood and stretched.

"Well, you better go get Miyu and get to the space port. Your flight will be leaving as soon as you can get there. I have a few hours to kill before the escort job, and Wolf can go at any time." Fox nodded and gave her a rough hug as he spoke.

"Alright. See you later Fara." She smiled as he let go.

"Okay, take care of yourself!" he was already gone to catch Miyu. Fara marched out to find the others.

* * *

><p>Fox and Miyu stepped out of the cab they had used to reach the spaceport and Fox grabbed their bags.<p>

"Alright, by the packet Fara sent me, we need to meet up with a Mr. Greyson. Says he will be in all black, Brown and white fur, Canine." Fox was too busy reading the small dossier attached to the files to look up, causing Miyu to playfully punch his shoulder. Fox glanced at her as she spoke.

"You mean that piece of clearly body guard material right there?" She was smirking as she pointed the man out to Fox. Fox sighed and rolled his eyes.

"I would assume so. Come on." Miyu had already taken off by the time he had finished speaking. He hefted all three of their bags and trotted after her. She was already speaking to him as Fox caught up to the unburdened Feline.

"So you must be Miss Miyu, and you must be Mister McCloud. If you will follow me, we are going to bypass security. So that any weapons you may be carrying won't be confiscated." Fox nodded and followed Miyu through the terminal. They reached the security desk and Greyson flashed his ID. "These two are with me." The guard lazily nodded and waved them past. They marched onto a small private light frigate sized vessel. The ship barely reached eighty meters, but it was large enough to have its own warp drive. Another bodyguard nodded to them as they marched up the boarding ramp.

"So when are going to meet whoever it is we are being meat shields for?" Greyson stayed unfazed by his statement, remaining the same emotion as he responded.

"I'm taking you to Miss Ashlyn as we speak." They marched deeper into the ship until they arrived in a lounge type room. Two more of the formal bodyguards were standing by the door. Two teenagers were sitting at one of the tables, chatting between the two of them. One was a silvery white feline, the other was a tan vulpine. "Miss Ashlyn, your temporary bodyguards have arrived." The Feline looked up and stood to greet them.

"How many times do I have to tell you Grey, just call me Kyra!" she playfully punched his shoulder as she passed him.

"Never have I and I never will miss Ashlyn." Miyu put her hand out almost instantly.

"Hello Miss Ashlyn, my name is Miyu." She smiled in her usual sly fashion as Ashlyn shook her hand.

"You two call me Kyra too, otherwise this whole fiasco was for nothing. And you are?" She was looking at Fox, who tried to shift one of the bags so he could shake her hand. One of the bags slipped off his shoulder and hit the floor with a heavy thunk. He cursed before he picked the bag up.

"Sorry, I'm Fox McCloud." Her jaw dropped as he spoke.

"As in, _The_ Fox McCloud!? The leader of the Star Fox team?" he nodded as she continued. "Damn! I feel better with you around. What's in the bag you dropped? Sounds really heavy." Fox smirked as he glanced at the black duffel bag.

"A few ultra-compact blasters, me and Miyu's blasters, a machine gun, a whole bunch of different explosives, my blaster carbine, two light weight sniper rifles, and a heavy blast rifle. Can never be too prepared." Kyra raised an eyebrow at him as she spoke.

"Do you really think you need all that?" Fox laughed as Miyu responded for him.

"Well, a bad ass mercenary needs to bring a few things. Why do you think it took us so long to pack?" Fox glared at her, the faintest trace of a grin at the edges of his muzzle. "Who's your friend there?" Kyra chuckled as she waved her friend over.

"Dust, come here! I think you'll like one of my new body guards!" the Vulpine stood and trotted over, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Hello, my name is Dust. I was born on the streets. Her father took me in when I was little. Hence the name. it's just what people called me." He held his hand out as he spoke.

"Hi, I'm Miyu. And this overloaded old timer is Fox McCloud." He took a second look at him, shocked.

"Wow, you are. Never thought I would meet you!" Fox smirked as he spoke to Greyson.

"Now, introductions are all well and nice, but where the hell am I supposed to drop these?" Greyson gestured for them to follow as he led the way to their room. The two teens waved goodbye as they went back to their table. Greyson finally arrived at their room and opened the door for them.

"These will be your quarters for both the journey there and the trip back. You got here in time that we will be taking a Gate jump to Fachina, then Warping to Fortuna. Should only be about thirty six hours before we arrive, then they will be spending four days groundside before we warp back to Corneria for you. Hope it works for you." Fox nodded his thanks and marched in, dropping the bags on the floor before plopping onto the bed.

"Hey, you don't want to go watch the Gate jump? I heard they are really cool." Fox smiled as he propped himself up on his elbow.

"I've seen my share of them. CDF has sent the Star Fox team through the orbital gate more times than I can count. In fighters once. Go ahead, I'm just going to catch some shut eye." She smiled and kissed his cheek before trotting out of the room.


	12. Chapter 11

Fara let her eyes take in every small piece and movement as she passed through the Meteo asteroid field. For most of the trip, they had been flying in shifts, two pilots out, two inside, ten hour shifts. But, because of the pass through the asteroids being a perfect and heavily used ambush point, all four pilots were flying at that time. The ship they were escorting was a part of a large convoy of ships, a few of the others having hired their own escort fighters. She sighed as she activated her communications equipment.

"Falco, Fay, Slippy, seeing anything?" she waited as each of them responded in turn.

"Slippy here, nothing over here." His fighter was a short way in front of hers. Although built off of the Arwing X-03, Slippy had heavily modified it, much as Falco had modified his. Only Slippy thickened the armor, added a second engine, making it a twin engine fighter craft, and added heavy duty weapons for dealing with capital ships more than fighters. The two massive cannons were connected underneath the wings, extending almost as far forward as the fuselage. The wings were also much thicker and tougher than on the standard Arwing design.

"Falco here. My zone is clean, not a peep." Falco's fighter was rigged for extreme speed and maneuverability. He had stripped armor off, and added extra G-Diffusers on the wings, looking like feathers. He also replaced his cargo bay and charge laser with a missile bay, generally armed with advanced quick maneuver air to air missiles, or QAAM's.

"I don't see anything but rocks. Sorry." Fay's fighter was nearly identical to Fara's. Both were X-03 Arwings, and both had their cargo bays replaced with missile tubes, armed with basic multirole missiles. The missiles had enough power to them to be effective against capitol ships, and had enough mobility to be effective against fighters. The only down side, was the fact that they only carried four of them, but retained the charge laser.

"Rodger that. We should only be an hour or so until we are out of the Meteo. Slippy, Fay, I ….." her statement was cut off as one of the freighters in front of her exploded. Invader class three fighters were pouring out of two of the larger craft in the convoy, catching escort ships off guard. A menagerie of fighter craft swarmed out of the asteroids, along with three Venomian remnant frigates. "Ah shit, engage! Slippy hit those frigates, Falco, target bombers and interceptors! Fay, you and I will hit the bulk of their fighters and those two imposter freighters!" she heard the others acknowledge as she shot toward the front of the group. One of the freighter captains shouted over the radio.

"Damn it! Those imposter ships have deployed energy nets across the corridor! We have no escape!" she scanned the enemy vessel as she approached. The vessel had shielded itself as well, preventing any kind of weapons fire from punching through and damaging the ship.

"They've put up defensive shields as well! All fighters, protect the freighters! We will deal with those frigates!" she raced after one of the invaders, blasting it apart with a handful of lasers. A pair of strike bombers lanced past her, headed for one of the freighters. She looped around and chased them. Strike bombers carried a large number of missiles, typically rigged for anti-ship duty. She activated her charge laser and charged it up, locking onto one of the fighters. She squeezed the trigger and watched as the green ball of energy shot out and engulfed one of the bombers. Its payload detonated, blasting its wing man apart.

"Slippy here, those frigates have fairly advanced shielding. Nothing like they had even three years ago. The Bullfrog won't even scratch their paint!" she cursed as she ducked and weaved through the raging dogfight, destroying two of the enemy fighters as she raced by.

"Damn, these fucks are coming out of the wood works! This is a bit much, even for the Sky Claw! Hope you got a plan sister!" Fara cursed to herself as she rolled and dove, trying to shake a small swarm of fighters that had taken to her tail. Red laser shots lanced by as she tried to duck and weave around them.

"I'm not Fox alright! I'm not this great almighty leader, okay!?" she narrowly dodged a missile as lasers impacted on her shielding. She slammed on the rudder pedals, activating the G-diffusers, and bringing the fighter to a complete stop. The small group of fighters scattered as they tried to avoid Fara's ship. She released the G-Diffusers and shot after one of the enemy ships. It flared apart as she fired linked laser blasts into the craft.

"Fara, if we moved through the asteroid field and flanked the blocking ships, it could get us behind those shields. The power output by those barriers will be enormous, I doubt the ships shielding extends to the fore or rear section of the hull." Fara grinned as she angled toward the asteroids.

"Fay, I love you, you crazy canine! Falco, Slippy, hold the line, Fay, on me. We are punching a hole" they acknowledged as she shot past asteroids, enemy fighters chasing them. She rolled out of the asteroids, now on the opposite side of the energy net. A high pitched squeal filled her canopy as a red crosshair focused on the freighter. She unleashed all four of her missiles toward the ship before rolling and juking, narrowly dodging weapons fire. Four more missiles joined hers as Fay fired. All eight missiles slammed into the freighter and detonated. The ship's shape bulged out as its reactor went critical and blew the craft into chunks. The barrier fell as Fara whooped into the radio.

"Hell yeah! All ships, get your asses moving! Fighters, hold em back long enough for the ships to boost out of the asteroids!" she heard the ship captain's acknowledge as she raced back into the dogfight.

* * *

><p>Wolf sighed as he piloted his fighter toward the asteroid base. His comm line lit up and he adjusted to hear the transmission.<p>

"Oh hey, Lord O'Donnell! Long time no see! I'll deactivate the defense guns and open the bay for ya. Who's the new guy?" he grunted as Katt responded.

"New guy? Damn what guy do you know flies a pink fighter?" Wolf spoke before anyone else could.

"Katt, simmer down. Coming your way." He killed the comm unit as he gently drifted the fighter toward the base. "Katt, got our little 'present' ready to go?" he had swapped to a heavily encrypted short range channel.

"Yup, nuke is primed and ready. I still want to know how the hell you got a hold of this thing." He grunted as they weaved through the asteroids. The base structure came into sight and they stayed in formation. When they reached a thousand meters out, Wolf suddenly yelled into the radio.

"Now!" he yanked back on his control yoke as he slammed the throttle forward. A large white streak lanced away from Katt's modified invader, just before she pulled away. He watched in anticipation as the weapon shot toward the base. There was a brilliant white flash and the base disappeared.

"Whoo! That was easy as all hell!" Katt's voice made Wolf roll his eyes.

"I told you Katt, piece of cake. And if I told where I get my military grade hard ware, then you would be going for it all the time." They flew clear of the asteroids as Wolf piloted closer to one of the subspace transmission buoys placed around the Lylat system. He linked in and sent a prepared message to their contractor. He then requested a direct link to Fara and waited for a response. The call registered as failed and he tried again. After the fourth attempt, he finally decided to try Fox. The call connected and a holographic screen appeared in front of him. Fox was shirtless and looked like he had just rolled out of bed.

"Damn Wolf, could you call at a more inconvenient time?" Miyu stirred in the other bunk in the small hotel room as Wolf spoke.

"Have you heard anything from Fara? I can't get ahold of her." Fox rubbed his eyes as Miyu wrapped her blanket around her and moved closer to the screen.

"Um she called a few hours ago. When I wasn't sleeping. Anyway, they were just entering the bottle neck, should be out by now." Wolf cursed as he angled his Wolfen toward the Tadpole.

"Alright I'll take the tadpole to check on them. Wolf out." Fox waved him off and cut the link as he fired the engines toward the Tadpole. "Amanda, fire up the Warp drive, set course for the Meteo. Dropped out of contact with Fara." The other two fighters followed him to the Tadpole as Amanda responded.

"Alright, spinning up the drives and setting intercept course. Should only be a few hours Wolf." Wolf looked out into the stars, almost as if he could see the convoy she was protecting.

* * *

><p>Matheson watched as Kursed laid back on the tiny bed, just trying to sleep. He knew the past few weeks had been hard for her to sleep because of near constant dreams, none of them making any sense. Usually about a male figure she could never make out. Matheson's voice suddenly startled her as he spoke.<p>

"Hey got us a contract. Be a piece of cake for you. Unarmored, in the open and here on Fortuna. I'm forwarding all the data to your combat rig now. If you're up to it." she smiled as she sat up, rubbing her fore head.

"Yeah, I'm game. Just let me get suited." He watched as she stood and stretched best she could in the cramped space. She was strapping her armor on as he continued.

"Now, I don't have much info, just that the target is staying in this hotel. Too heavily guarded for a frontal, but target moves around for most of the day. Should be able to track her till a good shot spot. Couple guards in the limo, but that's It." she nodded as she donned her cloak and hood.

"Alright. I'm on it. See you when I get back." he grinned as she waved and stepped off the ship. He waited until she was long enough gone before he opened the comm line.

"Finally. I almost thought you had died in Kursed's killing spree." He smiled as he responded to the blacked out figure.

"Almost did. But, I think I have Kursed wrapped around my finger. If I can get a real friendship going, I think I can convince her to join us. Looks like your plan is working." The figure chuckled slightly.

"Yes, I believe it is. Carry on, old friend." He grinned as the screen turned black.


	13. Chapter 12

Kursed set the bi-pod out on her rifle as she set up in the short tower. Her target came into this market almost every day, mainly because the goods and merchants changed every day. She focused her scope on the crowd below and started scanning for her query. She knew that she was with a group of four, after all of her observations.

"Matheson, do you have any eyes on the street?" she waited for him to respond as she continued to scan.

"Yes, I spotted the limo dropping them off just a minute ago. You should have her in your sights shortly." She continued to scan for them when she finally spotted them, coming out of one of the stalls. She lined the crosshair's up on her targets chest, right where the silvery Feline's heart would be. She waited patiently, following the figure with her weapon sight. As soon as there was nobody behind her target, she gently squeezed the trigger.

* * *

><p>Fox picked up the roughly carved model Arwing, smiling as he turned it over in his hand. It was based off the old X-02 model of the Arwing, the one that he and his father used to make the Star Fox team famous. There were carvings all across the store that Kyra had led them into, of almost anything you could imagine. Some were painted, some were still rough wood, and some were as smooth as glass. Kyra's voice startled him and he spun to face her.<p>

"You seem like a really quiet person, Fox." He grunted as he set the model back on the shelf.

"Yeah, I am." she smirked as she picked the same model back up.

"Brings up memories, doesn't it?" he nodded as images shot through his mind.

"Yeah. I flew a fighter like that almost a decade ago. Was a pretty good ship to be honest." She beckoned for him to follow as she stepped up to the counter.

"So, you and Miyu have a thing going, don't ya?" Fox's tail flicked nervously as he responded.

"Um, yeah. A little one to be honest. How did you….?" She cut him off as she reached the register.

"Saw you kiss her. here." She handed the cashier what she owed for the small model before turning toward the doorway.

"Well, I can't say you don't have sharp eyes." Fox smirked at her as she waved to Dust and Miyu.

"Thanks. I am curious, what do you think of me? Personally. I mean, I get a lot of crap for being the daughter of a rich weapons designer. Most think I'm some evil vile person because of it." Fox smiled as they stepped out of the store, just ahead of the other two.

"You seem fairly decent. I wouldn't think too much on it. People these days kinda frown down on soldiers, and the people who supply them." Fox glanced up as a glint caught his attention. He could just barely make out the silhouette of a person in one of the decorative watch towers around the market. And they were aiming a rifle right at them. "Get down!" he shoved on her shoulder, sending her sprawling just as a rifle shot rang out. Something ripped through his upper left arm as his blaster came up and fired on the snipers position. The flurry of red bolts caused the sniper to duck down, long enough that Fox was able to shield Kyra from the sniper as he shoved her through the crowd.

"Fox! Your hit!" Miyu had drawn the two hold out blasters she had on her hidden chest rig, firing a flurry of green blasts at the tower.

"I know, just cover Dust and keep running for the limo!" he looked back at the now empty tower as he ran, one hand on the scruff of Kyra's neck. A figure leapt between two roof tops nearby and he fired a pair of laser blasts toward her, both going wide. A few seconds later, they arrived at the limo and dived inside. Two more rifle shots rang across the area as two more slugs slammed into the door. Fox slammed it shut behind him as he yanked the black duffle out from under the seat. His heavy blaster rifle came into his hands as he slid the bag over to Miyu, who grabbed Fox's usual carbine. She kept digging through the bag before she finally pulled the med kit out.

"Fox, come here. Jacket off." He set the rifle down and did as she said, hollering up to the driver.

"Phone your commander, have an unmarked vehicle meet us at the hotel, we'll switch vehicles and lay low. It's not going to be safe to go back to the ship for at least a few hours, if not a day or two." the driver nodded as Fox winced. The quick stop powder in the medical kit burned like hell.

"Fox, your injury is pretty nasty. Passed clean through but, well it had to have been a big bullet. He finally glanced at the wound, inspecting it before letting her bandage the wound.

"Rifle report didn't sound like a big weapon. Low caliber, high velocity. I would guess a sledgehammer round." Miyu went wide eyed as she realized what he was meaning.

"Kursed?" she spoke softly, not letting the two teens hear her. Fox nodded in response as she finished the bandage. He grabbed his rifle and moved to the window, ready to flick the weapon up at any time. The car suddenly started tumbling and rolling across the street, splintering apart. Fox groaned as the vehicle came to a rest, reaching for his rifle.

"Everyone all right?" the vehicle was now on its side, and the crushed door was wide open. Miyu helped the other two stand in the cramped space as Fox wiggled out of the door, slumping to the ground outside of the limo. A cloaked and hooded figure marched toward the limo, a long black bow staff in her hands. Fox snapped his rifle up and fired as he hollered. "Miyu, get them out of here!" a bluish white barrier formed between him and the figure as he kept firing. Bright blue bolt after bolt glanced off of the shield as she calmly advanced on him. The shield dropped as she reached him and slammed the staff into his weapon. It skittered across the pavement as Fox dodged the follow up swing toward his chest. He snapped his foot into her leg, knocking her off balance as he yanked on the staff in her hands. A familiar energy seemed to flow through his body as he spun the staff around and slammed it into her chest. She stumbled back and was caught off guard as a thought from Fox sent a blue wall of energy toward her. He watched as she tumbled across the pavement.

"You are going to pay for that!" he knew that she was snarling at him, just by the tone of her voice. And yet, something about the voice seemed familiar. He aimed the bulbous end of the staff at her and sent a pair of fiery red balls at her. She dodged them as he shouted.

"Where the hell did you get this!?" he knew the weapon almost like a friend would know another friend.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Her gloved hands moved to either side of her chest, yanking a pair of blasters out and opening fire. Fox narrowly back flipped behind the wreckage of the limo, one of the blasts knocking the staff from his hand. He cursed as he yanked his pistol back out and fired at the figure. She seemed to know exactly where he was aiming as he did so, letting her dodge every single blast.

"Fox, were clear! Rendezvous later, just get out of there!" Miyu's voice sounded panicked over the radio as Fox toke off down one of the alley ways. He spun at the end of it, seeing no sign of the assassin before he sprinted off into the city streets.

* * *

><p>Matheson watched as Kursed stormed onto the Cloud Runner. She cast her rifle onto the bed and was almost screaming at him.<p>

"Damn it Matheson, who the hell was that!" he waited as she started stripping out of her armor, leaving her in a tank top. Her long blue hair fell down well past her shoulders, and she could probably mesmerize any man she met.

"His name is Fox McCloud. Used to be the lead pilot of an elite mercenary unit, but he disbanded it about two years ago." She nodded as she gestured for him to stand.

"Alright. Here, take this, make a barrier with It." he looked confused as she held her staff out to him. It was a unique weapon as far as Matheson knew, and the second he touched the weapon, an electric shock shot through his body, followed by a dull warmth flowing from the weapon. _Barrier._ Instead of a barrier forming at his thought, a tiny red ball shot out of the bulbous end and left a small burn on the wall of the cabin.

"Okay, your point is?" she sighed as the staff shrank and she dropped it on to the bed.

"No one can just pick up the staff and use it. And yet he did." Matheson shrugged as he turned back to his monitor.

"Maybe it's just certain people. Or maybe he was just lucky. Now, your primary concern should be finding that girl and silencing her." Kursed nodded as she cleared the bed off and flopped onto it.

"Tell me if you find something. I'm exhausted, need to sleep." he gently patted her shoulder before turning back to the screen and restarting his search.


	14. Chapter 13

Wolf watched asteroids drift by as they reached the exit for the bottleneck. Amanda was suddenly speaking as a proximity alarm went off.

"Got seven ships on sensors, and a whole lot of energy readings. Looks like active combat. Commencing LADAR scan now." Wolf watched silently, amazed at how fast her fingers flew across the controls. "Confirmed combat, three venomian frigates, four freighters, varied class, and a whole lot of fighters." Wolf was already halfway to the door as he spoke.

"Get us closer, Leon, Katt, mount up!" the two of them nodded as the ship lurched forward. He trotted through the hallway all the way to the back of the ship, stopping inside the airlock to wait for the others. As soon as they stepped in, he sealed the first door and opened the second, rushing through. His fighter was docked to the third tube on the starboard side of the ship. He glanced at the other two just before he slipped down the ladder and into his cockpit. The ship fired up as his fingers flashed across familiar controls.

"Alright, you're within spitting distance, good luck Wolf!" he smirked as he disengaged the clamp and shot away from the fighter carrier. The three frigates were only three kilometers away, and their small little squadron was coming up right behind the hostile force.

"Alright, Katt, Protect the Tadpo…." Amanda's voice cut him off before he could finish speaking.

"Scratch that Katt, Tadpole covers herself. Charging EMP and point defense weapons." Wolf sighed as the gap between them and the enemy rapidly shrank, already within a kilometer of the frigates.

"Alright, nail those fighters, Amanda, see if you can find Fara. Engage!" Wolf rammed his throttle to full as he came up on the frigates, ignoring them completely. He slipped behind a strike bomber and opened fire, watching as it blasted apart. His head swiveled after a pair of Invaders as he charged up his charge laser. It locked on to one of them and he fired, watching the green ball of energy engulf one of the fighters. The other juked away and Wolf blasted after it.

"Wolf!? You are a sight for sore eyes!" Wolf smiled at the sound of Fara's voice.

"Status?" the fighter he was chasing erupted in a ball of fire as he pitched and rolled, angling toward the thicker dogfight around the fighters. Shots ripped past as he ducked and weaved through the swarm of hostiles, easily destroying almost an entire squadron in one fell swoop.

"Banged up. Most of the freighters are gone, and we are down to six fighter craft out here. Nothing we have can touch those frigates!" Wolf caught a glimpse of Slippy's fighter as he rolled away from a pair of red lances.

"Slippy! Be ready to hit those frigates, I'm going in loud!" Amanda's voice echoed through the comm as Wolf rolled his fighter around. The Tadpole shot toward the frigates as dull blue blasts shot away from the ship and it spiraled through their formation. Seconds later Slippy's fighter rocketed toward the ships. Two massive green lances shot away from his fighter. The frigate he aimed for burst apart as both lances punched clean through the reactor core. Wolf smirked and dived back into the dogfight. A pair of fighters dropped onto a red Arwings tail. A pair of carefully aimed blasts shot past the Arwing and slammed into the fighters, destroying both almost instantly.

"Thanks Wolf! Didn't even see those two!" Wolf rolled his eyes at Fay's voice.

"Learn to watch your tail pup!" Wolf rolled and dove as an Invader slipped onto his own tail. He waited for the fighter to follow before he slammed the G-diffusers to full and his fighter came to a sudden stop. The fighter raced past, easily killed by the linked blast Wolf sent after it.

"All craft, disengage, the enemy is retreating!" Wolf glanced at his search radar when he heard Fara's voice, watching the ships slowly trickle away, following a severely damaged frigate. The other frigate had split open along the length of the bow, almost like a giant banana and was now drifting slowly through space.

"Fara! Are you alright?!" he heard her laugh as a slightly worse for wear Arwing flew just off his starboard wing.

"I'm fine Wolf, can't say the same for most of the convoy though. We got, well, bottlenecked in the Bottleneck. Most of the convoy is scrap." Wolf cursed as one of the captains spoke over the radio.

"If I hadn't bitten the bullet and paid for the Phoenix Fire's support, we would all be dead. Your quick thinking got us out of there miss Phoenix." Wolf smirked as he guided his fighter back to the Tadpole.

"Captain, do you have access to a subspace link?" Wolf waited to start shutting his fighter down after docking, letting the captain respond.

"Yeah, we do. Anything for you guys. We'd be dead without you." Wolf smirked and shut his fighter down before climbing up into the Tadpole.

* * *

><p>Miyu watched Fox as he paced back and forth near the window of the small hotel room they were in. the blaster carbine never left his hands after they had reunited. He gently moved the curtain away from the window to peak out, without letting someone peak into the small room. Every muscle in Fox's body was clearly rigid and tense. Her attention drifted to the two teenagers, huddled together on one of the beds. She could see Kyra shaking violently, still terrified from the day's events. She opened her mouth to say something to Fox just as a loud ring suddenly filled the room. Both of Miyu's hold out blasters shot out of their holsters and aimed at the source of the sound just as Fox's carbine did the same. Both of them were now aiming at Fox's blood stained jacket. Miyu let her breathe out and slid the two blasters back in their holsters as Fox dug through the jackets pockets. He yanked a communicator out and answered the call.<p>

"Make it quick Wolf." Miyu moved closer, curious if he had found Fara.

"Found Fara, they got ambushed by Venom forces, minor damage, all fighters accounted for. Something going on Fox?" Fox glanced at Miyu before he spoke.

"Yeah, we got attacked by Kursed. Went to run from the planet, and she blew the hell out of the frigate we used to get here. Sorry, she may be tracking this call, gotta go." Fox hung up the communicator and tossed it onto the jacket. "Let's hope Wolf gets the memo." She nodded as he finally looked at her, tears clearly having flowed out of his eyes.

"Yeah. Fox, everything alright? You look pretty shaken up?" he glanced at the two teenagers before shaking his head.

"Just something I don't understand." He dropped onto the stiff mattress and she sat beside him.

"Alright, so tell me?" his eyes closed as she watched him quietly, waiting for him to speak.

"Krystal, had this, almost magical staff. Ran off a whole bunch of energies I didn't understand, not for lack of trying on her part. I fought with this weapon about three years ago. It works off of mental thought. It's well, unique. Anyway, Kursed has it. I don't know how, or why but, well, you would never forget the way this weapon feels to hold." Miyu racked her brain, trying to remember what little she had heard from the others about Krystal.

"one of the few times I've heard her mentioned, well, I wasn't supposed to but, after she was, well, you know, Wolf went back with his team to try to find her. Scavengers had already been at the sight, and they never found her body. I heard Wolf mention something about her staff not being amongst the debris." Fox nodded, content with that answer.

"I guess if someone spent years working with it, they'd figure it out." He seemed to finally relax a little. "Anyway, get some sleep. I'll wake you if Wolf calls again." She nodded to him as he stood back up, pacing back and forth in front of the window again.

"How's your arm?" he glanced at the bandaged injury, almost as if he just realized it was there.

"Better, don't even feel it now." She started to pull her chest harness off and froze as Fox spoke. "Keep that on Miyu. Never know when that Kursed is coming back." she nodded and pulled the blankets over her body, settling in for a very uncomfortable night.

"Have you been in this kind of situation before Fox?" he glanced at the two teens before shaking his head.

"Sure loads of times. Just go to sleep Miyu he stepped over and kissed her cheek before speaking again.

"That means you too! Both of you, get some rest." He flicked the lights off after they settled in and she let herself slip into sleep. Strange images drifted through her mind, most of them not making any sense to her. She suddenly shot awake as a deafening crash filled the room.

* * *

><p>Kursed stepped into the parking lot outside of the small motel and closed her eyes, just trying to feel out her target. She flitted through the different minds until one made her stop. She had never felt anyone feel quite as torn as this person was, and yet, he was somehow familiar to her. She mentally shrugged and moved on, finding her target in the same room as the torn man. She moved to just outside the room just as the light was shut off. Most of the people were asleep very quickly, except for one. The man she had dueled with earlier was slowly pacing back and forth just on the other side of the window. Fox, if she remembered correctly. Her brain froze for a second, for reasons she didn't understand. She shrugged and waited until he started to become drowsy before slipping her staff into her hand and extending it. He seemed to perk up, adrenaline suddenly coursing through his body, just before she aimed the bulbous end at the window. A blue shockwave blasted out and smashed the window in. she dived through and rolled as she landed, dodging the pair of blaster bolts from the man, who had slid to the door and aimed at where she was about to be. He adjusted his aim toward her as she came to her feet and she opened a shield between them. His blaster shots bounced off and she blasted him up against the wall with another shockwave. One of the sleeping individuals shot up, pointing two small blasters at her. Kursed did a sideways flip, back toward the window. Green bolts burned the wall, passing through where she had just been. A red ball lanced out of her staff, the woman narrowly dodging the fiery ball by rolling off the bed.<p>

"Get them out of here!" she saw the man out of the corner of her eye just before he slammed into her, carrying both of them through the shattered window onto the hard concrete outside. She leapt to her feet, realizing that he had already rolled to his feet. A blaster came off his chest rig and was pointing straight at her chest. She slammed her staff into the weapon, knocking it up and away as a red laser blast shot into the night sky. She spun around and slammed the staff into his chest, making him stagger back. The blaster was still in his hand and he fired a blast at her. It grazed her thigh as she swung the staff into the weapon, finally knocking it out of the man's hands. She gasped as her feet were swept out from under her. She rolled back to her feet as he finished his spinning swipe and straightened up, one foot slightly ahead of the other, hands loosely at his neck, and a slight bounce between his feet. She snarled as she lashed out with the staff, placing the point behind her back and using it as a fulcrum to swing the bulbous end in a wide arc at him. He dashed forward and placed his forearm where her hand was, severely diminishing the force of the strike. His other palm slammed into her chest, knocking her back. She spun and swung the staff back around, swinging low this time. He leapt clean over her and the staff and landed behind her. She barely had time to turn around before he launched a spinning set of ariel kicks. She managed to deflect the first two, the third connecting on her chest and sending her sprawling. He landed on his feet and dropped down on her, trying to pin her arms with his knees. She blasted him over her head with her collapsed staff and rolled back onto her feet, extending the staff and swinging toward him. He leapt and log rolled in the air, the staff passing harmlessly underneath him.

"Stop! Why the hell do you want Kyra dead!" she glared at him before she aimed the staff, firing a pair of fire blasts toward him. He dropped to ground, dodging both. She spun her staff around and slammed the bulbous end on his back. He screamed slightly at the impact, but suddenly rolled, grabbing the staff and spinning to his feet. The staff yanked out of her hands and she felt it impact the side of her head as he swung it at her. She saw stars as she staggered around for a second. She felt more than saw the staff whirling back around at her injured thigh, just before it slammed into her. She let out a shriek before she collapsed to the ground. There was a loud clang as she rolled away and spun to her feet, both blasters up and firing at him. The blue blasts slid clean off the blue-ish hued shield. She ran forward, still firing as she leapt into the air and slammed her feet down on the shield, watching it shatter beneath her. Her blasters slipped back into her holsters as she released a snap kick into his hand. The staff flew out as she pounded a rapid flurry of punches into his chest. He staggered back as she cartwheeled over the staff, scooping it up and twirling it behind her back. A spot light suddenly illuminated the lot, and she barely brought a shield up in time as massive green laser blasts shook the ground. The man scooped his pistol off the ground before sprinting away, and she cursed before she did the same.


	15. Chapter 14

Fox accepted Wolf's hand as he climbed the ladder up into the Tadpole. Miyu was glaring at him, arms crossed.

"Trying to get yourself killed, eh Fox?" Fox grunted as he responded.

"No, trying to save us some time and kill that bitch already." Miyu stepped closer as she responded, dropping one arm to her side.

"Clearly, she was too much for you alone. Don't risk yourself like that again." Fox noticed the concern in her eyes, shrugging it off.

"I'm fine. Had her right where I wanted her, coulda killed her if that fighter hadn't opened fire." Wolf grunted as his own arms crossed.

"You were getting your ass kicked when I showed up." Fox glared at him before snapping back.

"You would have been dead in the first fight, so why don't you just shut up." Fox growled slightly and marched up onto the crew deck headed for his cabin. Miyu's voice caused him to stop dead in his tracks.

"Fox! Mr. Ashlyn has requested that we take his daughter straight back to him. You're not done yet." Fox glared at her as he spoke.

"Yeah, but I'm sure you can handle the next few hours without me. Unlike you, I haven't slept." He marched away down the corridor and opened the door to his room. Miyu slipped in behind him, the same concerned expression still on her face.

"Are you okay?" Fox sighed and nodded, dropping onto his bed. "Do you mind if I stay here? You seem pretty shaken up." He shrugged as he responded.

"To be frank, I really don't care." Fox closed his as eyes as he settled into his bed. He felt warmth press up to his side as a hand started stroking the side of his face. He reached up and grabbed her hand, holding it pressed up against his cheek.

"I was born a slave. It's why I don't have a last name. My mother was, well, a pirate's play thing. He killed her after I was born, and gave me my name. A CDF raid killed him, and pulled me out of there. I went to bounty hunting to find men like him and kill them." Fox sat up, his chest pressing up against her back.

"Why are you telling me this?" she shrugged.

"I just want you to know that you aren't the only one who has been through a lot, and I want you to know that you're not alone." Fox sighed and laid back down.

"I'm fine Miyu. Just don't worry about it." Fox heard her take a breath to speak just before a Klaxon alarm went off. Amanda's voice rang out over the inter com.

"Fox! That bird like fighter is after us! Fara's ships are down for repairs, and Wolf's team don't have any fuel left." Fox cursed as he leapt to his feet, grabbing his Heads Up Display rig off his desk.

"Damn it! Wont this bitch just let me sleep already!" Fox sprinted into the tail boom of the ship and slid down the ladder to his fighter. He didn't bother to do a check list before he fired up the ship and dropped away from the Tadpole. He keyed up his radio, blasting every channel with his signal. "Alright Kursed, round two, and I am not letting you get away this time!"

* * *

><p>Her opponent's voice blared over the radio and she smirked. One lone fighter against her was nothing more than an annoyance. The small craft reminded her of an x-02 Arwing, but was vastly different. And yet, something about it seemed strangely familiar. They shot toward each other, setting up for a head to head engagement. Green laser blasts lanced by and she started ducking and weaving, dodging enemy weapons fire. Her anti-ship cannon fired, sending a massive red bolt toward the fighter. Her opponent neatly pitched up, ruddered, and rolled, corkscrewing the fighter around the blast and back on course. The two craft were about to pass each other when she pitched up, trying to loop behind him. Her craft shuddered as laser blasts slammed into the shields. He had pitched and rolled, tucking his fighter in neatly behind her. She yanked the g-diffuser lever out of its slot, bringing her ship to a jerking stop. The form of the enemy fighter shot past, and she was about to shoot after him when laser blasts started shaking her fighter.<p>

"Damn it, he's good!" she shot away from him, rolling and juking, trying avoid his fire. An alarm went off as he launched a missile toward her ship. She killed her thrust, flipped, and started firing, detonating the missile and firing on the Arwing. It juked up and away, trying to avoid her fire. She snaked in behind him, following his every juke and dodge. The Arwings shields suddenly flared and died under her fire, one laser grazing the fuselage. She smirked as she locked a missile onto his hull. Laser blasts rocked her ship and Matheson cursed down below her.

"New contact! X-03 Arwing, hot on our ass!" Kursed shot away from the new fighter as a voice filled her head.

_"Seriously Fox, think you have to do everything yourself?"_ Kursed smirked as she juked and brought her fighter back onto the blue Arwing's tail. The other Arwing dropped between them, racing at her in a head on course. Kursed recognized the red G-Diffusers as she dived out of the way.

"These are the same people that warlord tried to have me kill." She heard Matheson grunt from the hold as she chased after the red fighter, her shields flaring and dying from the blue ones lasers.

"Damn it Kursed, pull out, these two are chewing you apart!" she cursed and opened her comm channel.

"You win this time. But I promise you, you will not be so lucky next time." She snarled as she aimed the ship out for deep space and fired the warp drive, launching them far away from the small freighter.

* * *

><p>Fara trotted back into the tail boom as Fox climbed out of his fighter. He seemed shocked for some reason.<p>

"Fox, are you alright?" he held up a finger as he shouted through the open airlocks.

"Who all heard that radio call?!" Falco was trotting his way back into the tail as he responded.

"It's not her Fox!" Fox grabbed his collar and rammed the bird up against the wall. He followed up with a single punch to Falco's face.

"And who is to say it isn't? _She _has the staff, she sounds like her! There is every possibility that it is her!" a single tear slid out of Falco's eye, sliding down his beak.

"Krystal is dead Fox. We both know that, I killed her. And you know I didn't want to. So if there was any chance she survived, do you think I wouldn't do everything I could to track her down? She was my friend too Fox. And she was important to you. That alone would be enough for me to look for her. She. Is. Dead. Fox. I'm sorry." His voice was very calm, his eyes unwavering from Fox's. Fox cursed and sent him sprawling. Miyu marched up at that exact moment, visibly bewildered.

"What the hell are you doing Fox?" Fara stepped between them as Fox glared at Miyu.

"Miyu, go to your bunk. I've got this." Miyu glared at Fara before she marched off. As soon as she was out of earshot, she rounded on Fox.

"Fox, cool the hell down! All because someone _sounds _like someone you knew, doesn't mean they are. Falco spent six months and every dime he had saved up trying to find her! And Wolf was chasing a man with every intention of setting off a nuke in a civilian city! He hates himself to this day for not going back for Krystal!" Fox glared at her, tears now freely flowing down his face.

"And how the hell do you even know any of that!?" Fox was snarling at her as she responded, very quietly.

"Because I found you in that bar, nine months ago. I asked Wolf, hunted down Falco. You haven't been you since she was killed, and you need to move on. You're just tearing yourself apart with all of this crap! And above that, you are destroying your friends. You need to just drop it. It's okay to grieve the loss of someone, but not to the point that you dishonor their memory, and I know Krystal wouldn't want you torn apart like this." He tried to walk away and she grabbed his arm. "Fox, I mean it." he shook loose of her and marched off into the ship. Her hands dropped to her hips as she cursed.


	16. Chapter 15

Miyu gestured for Kyra to lead the way down the ramp. The Ashlyn family had its own private landing pad, where the family's yacht normally parked. Kyra trotted down the ramp, having no bags because of the attack. Fox had managed to recover some of the weapons from the police before they left, but, all of their clothing was lost.

"Miyu, I just want to thank you. I stupidly thought I wasn't in any danger. I forced my dad to hire you guys." Miyu smiled and patted the young girls shoulder.

"Well, you probably wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for Fox. That assassin is one of the best out there, lucky for us, he's better." She stopped at the bottom of the ramp, smiling at her.

"Sounds like this isn't your first encounter?" she laughed and shook her head as a group of people rushed toward them, a slightly overweight feline leading the group.

"Yeah, a couple times. But we'll get her. We almost had her this time." The leading feline wrapped his arms around Kyra.

"Thank you so much for bringing her back! When I heard about the attack, and the ship being destroyed, I was terrified she wouldn't be coming home." Miyu smiled as he released his daughter and held his hand out to her.

"It's what you hired us for sir. No need to thank us." She shook his hand and he pulled his daughter close again. He suddenly reached out and grabbed Dust, pulling him into the same hug.

"And I'm glad you're safe too. I know you aren't my son, but I wish you were." Miyu was about to walk back up the ramp when she noticed Fox trotting down the ramp.

"Mr. Ashlyn, may I speak to you please, privately?" he had a puzzled look on his face. He nodded, sending his daughter off with his body guards.

"Mr. McCloud, yes? What is it?" Fox crossed his arms as he spoke, extremely quickly.

"Yes, I believe your family is still at risk sir. And I believe you are the next target. And I mean no disrespect to your bodyguards, but your defenses are hilariously in adequate for the assassin that was sent after your daughter. I am hoping, and strongly believe, that she will be the one coming after you. And I would like to offer the service of the Star Fox team, as well as the Phoenix Fire and Star Wolf to assist in your protection." The man looked stunned, probably matching Miyu's own expression.

"Do you really think so?" Fox nodded and he continued. "Alright, then what do you recommend?" Fox uncrossed his arms as he signaled someone down the ramp.

"I want you to put Wolf O'Donnell and Leon Powalski in charge of your ground based protection. Leon is an ex assassin, he knows how they think. Wolf is an excellent leader and is ruthless. You are going to want this to get this woman. Kat Monroe, Fay Spaniel, and Miyu here will be in charge of your air cover on the ground. You may need it. Meanwhile, the Star Fox team plus Fara will be actively hunting Kursed." Wolf and Leon reached the bottom of the ramp, introducing themselves to Ashlyn, who stared at them with fear.

"Fox, Bill sent us a message. General Peppy has unofficially assigned his unit to us. And said Lucy was tagging along." Fox nodded and continued.

"Whatever ship Bills unit is using will act as your inter planetary transport, Bill's flight flying cover. Lucy can join Miyu." Wolf nodded as Ashlyn spoke.

"And how do I know I can trust you two to provide adequate protection. Your criminals." Wolf stared at his feet for a second before he spoke.

"I nearly died two and a half years ago. Star Wolf lured a large group of enemies after us, buying time for Fox. Those Aparoids tore my fighter apart. I have not done a single job for a criminal organization since, and I've been hunting threats to the general populace. You can trust me." Mr. Ashlyn nodded tentatively, clearly still nervous about the two of them.

"Alright, I accept. I will have my head man give you my full itinerary for the next month. Anything you feel needs to change, change. But I must do every meeting set up. I am currently trying to get a contract with the military to upgrade their cannon systems with tech I recently developed. These cannons will give the CDF a considerable edge over all known combat forces, and hopefully saving lives. Fox, I expect you to bring this woman down." Fox nodded as he signaled for Miyu to follow.

"Miyu, I need your help to get their fighters down on the landing pad. The Star Fox team will use the Tadpole. Slippy should be dropping fuel and supplies down as we speak." Miyu grabbed his arm, stopping him.

"Fox, you haven't spoken to me in days. And since when did you re-establish the Star Fox team." He looked her over for a split second before he spoke.

"Look, I'm sorry. Just need time to think. And the reputation of the team may let us get information. Information that could lead us to Kursed. Just, be careful Miyu. Kursed is a great pilot." he wrapped his arms around her and held her for a few seconds before he let go.

"I understand. You be careful too. I'm going to pack some bags real quick. See you in the tail boom." Fox nodded and she left him there. She stepped into her room to find a note left on her desk. She opened it up, quickly reading the words scrawled on the page.

_Hey thanks for the conversations. I left my number and so on so keep in touch. Good luck with Fox, hope to see you again Miyu! _

_Kyra Ashlyn_

She smiled and quickly packed her bags.

* * *

><p>Matheson sighed as his head dropped into his hand.<p>

"Look, Oikonny, I'm sorry. She was up against Fox McCloud out there, and he was ready for her this time." The ape cursed before he spoke.

"I thought you said she was the best Matheson!" Matheson toke a long deep breath, trying to stay calm.

"Sir, it was just some unexpected complications. We are on our way to Katina right now, to finish the job." His heart leapt into his throat as Kursed's chair slid out of the cockpit.

"Who are you talking to?" he casually shrugged.

"The client for the botched job." She stared at the image as Oikonny spoke directly to her.

"Kursed, you are off the job. But I have a new offer for you. Instead of the girl, I want you to kill the father, Jerimiah Ashlyn. If you do so, I would like to hire you full time. I will provide everything you need, the best medical care, backup, a constant salary, and any equipment you need. All you need to do, is kill this man before his meeting on Corneria in exactly three weeks' time. Will you accept?" she cautiously nodded, speaking very carefully.

"Yes, but only if you promise to not try to control me. I think you may know what happens when someone tries that." Oikonny grinned as she started to slip her armor on. "Pardon me for leaving so soon, but I was on my way to scope out the Ashlyn manor." And she was out the door before Matheson could say anything.

"Now was that so hard Matheson? My plan will be in full swing once she takes care of Ashlyn. With no one to present the weapon system, it will be easier to steal and equip our ships with those upgrades. Once she kills him, I want her to go after General Hare, and put him down. That is when we will strike, while their forces are leaderless." Matheson nodded and closed off the comm line.

* * *

><p>Fara slowly climbed down the ladder into Fox's Arwing. Slippy needed it to be on the ground to repair the scoring to the armor, and Fox had been discussing security concerns with Mr. Ashlyn. She started powering the craft up when her fingers suddenly stopped, her eyes fixed on the photo Fox had taped beside the instrument panel. She recognized Fox, asleep on what looked like a beach, but the blue vixen curled up with him was unfamiliar to her. Her finger traced the beautiful girl's face when it suddenly hit her.<p>

_Krystal_. She sighed as she dropped the ship away from the Tadpole. She dropped the collective a little, realizing she was rising back up toward the ship. The landing skids lowered as she gently set the ship on the ground. Slippy waddled over as she opened the canopy and climbed out.

"You got this right?" Slippy nodded and she trotted toward the manor. She slipped into the living room, seeing Fox sitting on one of the couches, across from Mr. Ashlyn. "Fox, are you free enough to talk for a minute?" he glanced up, setting the glass of alcohol in his hand on the coffee table between them.

"Yeah, if you'll excuse me sir?" Ashlyn nodded as Fox stood up and followed her out of the door. She stopped just outside and faced him.

"Fox, why do you keep a picture of Krystal in your cockpit?" Fox crossed his arms as he responded.

"And why do you care? It's just a picture." She sighed as she spoke.

"I'm just curious. You really cared about her didn't you?" he glared at her as he turned back to the door.

"Obviously." She grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Look, Fox, I'm sorry. She meant everything to you, didn't she." He nodded, a single tear sliding down his cheek. She almost instantly wrapped her arms around him. "I'm here for you, ok?" he nodded as his grip on her tightened slightly.

"Thanks Fara. Glad to know we are still friends." A third voice made them both jump as they turned toward her.

"So, that explains a lot." Before either of them could say anything, Miyu stalked off back toward the small bungalows she and the others were staying in.

"Damn it. Can you go tell Mr. Ashlyn I'll be a bit?" Fara stopped him before he could follow her.

"No, I'll talk to her. Go finish with Ashlyn." Fox sighed before stepping back through the door. Fara trotted after Miyu, Knocking on the door to her bungalow. She threw the door open, glaring at Fara.

"What the hell do you want?" Fara spoke very softly as she responded.

"Miyu, that wasn't what it looked like. Were just friends. Really."

"Bullshit." She moved to slam the door in her face and Fara placed her foot in the way.

"Miyu, really. I just asked him about the picture in his cockpit. He just broke down. It was nothing." Miyu kept glaring at her until she sighed and pulled her foot out of the doorway. Miyu slammed the door between them and Fara collapsed to the ground, leaning on the wall. "Damn it, why do I always screw things up for him?"


	17. Chapter 16

Wolf leaned up against the side of the building, waiting for Fox to come out. His mind kept running through what he wanted to say to him over and over, hoping he would react the way he had thought out. Wolf kicked off the wall and started pacing back and forth, running through it in his head once more.

_"Fox, I need to say something to you."_

_"Yes Wolf?"_

_"I need to apologize. For Krystal. I didn't go back for her when I should've. I shouldn't have tried to complete my mission, just gone back and try to find her. She probably would be alive today if I had. And I'm sorry. It was my mistake. Don't blame Falco for protecting you. It was my actions that killed her, not his."_

Wolf jumped as the door opened, Fox stalking out of it.

"Fox, there is something I need to say to you." He glared at him, clearly agitated by being stopped.

"What?" Wolf shuffled his feet, trying to rethink how to word what he was going to say on the fly.

"Stop blaming Falco for Krystal's death. He was just protecting you, I'm the one who killed her. I didn't…" Fox cut him off before he could finish.

"That's lovely, but why don't you save this unimportant conversation for a time that I actually give a shit, which will probably be never." He turned off toward the bungalows, practically stomping away. Wolf was stunned for a second, utterly confused by Fox's actions.

"Wait Fox! What the hell is up with you pup!?" he stopped and rounded on Wolf, his eyes seeming to simply want to saw Wolf in half.

"I have enough problems on my plate to be worrying about who killed who! So instead of fighting over someone who is dead, why don't we just worry about the living, alright?" Wolf stared at him for a second, still utterly confused.

"Alright. Then can I at least ask what the hell is up?" Fox took a deep breathe, clearly trying to collect his thoughts.

"Miyu seems to have let it worm into her young mind that I'm cheating on her with Fara." Wolf laughed hard enough that his sides ached before he could bring it back under control.

"She really must be pretty thick to think that! Come on you two are just friends, right?" Fox nodded, and surprisingly, a small smile formed at the edges of his mouth.

"Yeah, we're just friends. But that wasn't always so." All thought of laughter died out in Wolf as he stared at Fox. Fara had told him they were friends, but nothing about them ever being more than that.

"What?" Fox smirked as he responded.

"She didn't tell you?" Wolf shook his head as Fox continued. "Well, me and Fara have known each other since we were pups. During high school, we were dating each other. When me and Bill choose to go to the flight academy, well she wasn't happy about it. We kept fighting until I decided to break up with her. Haven't talked to her since I left for the academy." Wolf grunted before he signaled for Fox to follow him.

"Well, let's go talk to Miyu together then. Maybe the two of us can get it through her skull." Fox smirked and clapped his shoulder.

"Thanks Wolf. Oh and, if you hurt Fara, I will kill you. We clear?" Wolf grinned as he responded.

"Clear as crystal." Fox smirked at him as they knocked on Miyu's door. She simply hollered through it, rather than opening it.

"What do you want?" Wolf held a finger up to Fox as he shouted back.

"It's Wolf. Need to talk to you about a few things! May I come in?!" Wolf shooed Fox over slightly, hiding him from the door as it cracked open, only one of Miyu's eyes visible on the other side. She sighed before she opened the door to let him in, Fox slipping in before she could shut it.

"I'm not speaking to you, ass wipe." Wolf chuckled at her, only succeeding at making her even angrier.

"Look, Miyu, it wasn't what you thought you saw. Me and Fara are just friends, she's known me since we were pups. She probably knows me better than anyone. She was just asking me about something. That's it." Miyu glared at him, crossing her arms.

"Oh and 'asking' you something required her to be all over you?" Wolf shot a glance at Fox, hoping he realized that it meant for him to shut up.

"Look, it was about a painful thing in his past. I'm sure he'd tell you about it if you just asked him." Fox nodded as Miyu's eyes bounced between them.

"Alright, what was she asking you about?" Fox never took his eyes off of her, waiting a few seconds to make absolutely sure she was listening.

"She was asking me about Krystal. Okay? You can ask me anything about it once Wolf here aint around. Deal?" she sighed and nodded.

"Deal." She suddenly hugged him and wolf took that as his sign to leave. He slipped back through the door before either of them could notice.

* * *

><p>Kursed slipped up to the wall of the Manor, using her staff to easily launch herself onto the wall. There were two guards, clad in full body armor and armed with heavy blasters patrolling this section of the wall. She dropped down into the courtyard and hugged the wall as the two of them met right above her. She ignored their conversation as she slipped through the shadows, running along to wall until she hit a corner. The manor was, in some ways, built like a castle. The main outer walls had walkways along them to let people view the country side around it, or for guards to patrol. There were four inner walls that simply blocked the exterior areas into four quadrants, going in from the corners of the outer wall to the central keep like house structure. In one area was some of the highest end agricultural technology, feeding the house, in one, which also housed the main entrance, was a sprawling garden. She happened to be in this one. The next one over had a landing pad and a cluster of bungalows for visitors. The final quadrant was a back yard type area, with a pair of swimming pools, water slides, an archery range, and all sorts of luxuries like those.<p>

She jumped up into the air, managing to grab onto the top of the retaining wall. Her arms strained as she hauled herself up and over the wall. The entrance into the main building here was directly beneath her targets bedroom, letting her blast her way up and in, rather than fighting through the heavily guarded stair way. Guards were positioned all along the retaining walls, forcing her to have to move through the open area in front of the empty landing pad and bungalows. The area wasn't very well lit, so it was going to be deceptively easy to sneak through. She moved low to the ground, flying between darkened patches of ground like a ghost. The area suddenly lit up like the sun had suddenly appeared. Massive spot lights had been attached to the few light poles in the area, illuminating the entire quadrant. She cursed as a voice echoed over the loud speaker.

"Drop your weapons and stand down! If you do not comply, you will be fired upon!" she let her staff slip back into her hand, instantly extending the weapon to its full length. Before she could react, a red lance pierced into her gut. She gasped, clutching the bleeding wound. Her feet started to carry her away, back toward the main wall. Blaster bolts started flying at her, her shield barely coming up in time to block them. She collapsed up against the wall, under the cover of the landing pad. She could hear the sound of pounding footsteps as the guards rushed to her.

"Matheson, I've been hit. Prep the ship, we gotta run!" he acknowledged as a pair of guards found her, both about to fire when she blasted them off their feet. Her staff glowed blue before spitting flame out of the bulbous end, jetting her up and over the wall. A familiar voice called from the wall as she ran from boulder to boulder, evading the guards' fire.

"Damn it! She's getting away, someone get Miyu on the comms and tell her to search the skies!" she cursed again as she slipped off into the darkness, easily able to find her way.

* * *

><p>Matheson paced back and forth on the hard desert ground, just outside the Cloud Runner's ramp. He jumped as he heard a weak voice call out to him in the darkness.<p>

"Matheson?" he sprinted toward the sound of her voice, barely being able to make out her form in the darkness. She collapsed into his arms when he reached her, forcing him to carry her toward the ship.

"Kursed, can you hear me?" she didn't respond as he hauled her up the ramp, laying her on the one bed. Her hood had fallen off as he stripped her chest and stomach armor off. He yanked the medical kit off the wall and opened it. He had no clue how to use any of the supplies in it, so he grabbed the roll of gauze and pressed it to the wound in her stomach. "Just hang in there Kursed!" he raced into the cockpit and fired up the comm terminal, powering the ship on and lifting away from the ground.

"Matheson, is the job done?" He shook his head as the craft rocketed out of the atmosphere.

"Negative sir, it was a trap the whole damn time! Kursed has been shot, I need somewhere I can take her, the closer to Katina the better!" he rapped the control board as he waited for Oikonny to get back to him.

"We have a pirate group that works for us operating on Katina's moon. They are expecting you." He nodded and fired the Warp drive, getting them there in seconds. The exact co-ordinates appeared on the console, his hands instantly bringing the ship on the right vector. The craft rumbled slightly as they dropped into the moon's weak atmosphere, lasting only a few seconds. The base structures loomed ahead of him and he rammed the throttle forward, trying to push more speed out of the craft.

"Cloud runner, we sure as hell hope that's you approachin' like a bat out of hell! We have opened the landing bay, and got our doc waiting for ya!" he didn't respond as he raced the ship into the hanger, nearly crashing it into the back wall. The craft dropped onto its landing gear as he impatiently waited for the chair to lower back into the hold. He grabbed her limp form off the bed and raced down the ramp, practically running into the doctor at the bottom. The man gestured for him to follow, leading him into the base and eventually a medical bay. Matheson laid her down on one of the cots, stepping back as the doctor pulled the gauze off to inspect the wound.

"Is she gonna be okay Doc?" the man chuckled as he grabbed his tools.

"Yes she will. Nasty hit she got, but you got her here quick enough, no thanks to your medical skills." Matheson breathed a sigh of relief as he slid to the floor, shaking form the adrenaline rush.


	18. Chapter 17

Fox trotted onto the Tadpole's bridge, Wolf's image already dominating the main holoprojector.

"What's going on Wolf?" Wolf sighed before he spoke.

"Well, do you want the bad news, or the good news first?" Fox glared at him before he spoke.

"The important news." Wolf chuckled as he rubbed behind one of his ears.

"Well, the good news is, Kursed fell into our trap. The bad news is, she slipped away. We aren't entirely sure how, but she did. Leon could swear he hit her, roughly center mass. She wouldn't have been able to fly when she did if she had been hit anywhere on her chest or gut." Fox scoffed before he spoke.

"Smooth Wolf, means she isn't alone. One of our old contractors thinks he can get us some info if we give his guys some air cover. They are going after some pirates based on Macbeth, think they may have data on the bounty market, which may find who wants the Ashlyn's dead." Wolf nodded as a body guard walked on screen, handing him a data pad. He flicked through it before handing it back.

"Well, I wish you guys luck. And Fara, be careful, please?" Fox glanced at her, smirking as her tail fluttered. He hadn't seen her embarrassed like this in years.

"You too Wolf!" Wolf smiled just before the transmission cut out. Fox looked at Slippy and Amanda as he continued.

"How much longer until we reach Macbeth?" they flicked through the screens as they responded.

"Not long, few hours at most." Fox nodded and walked off of the bridge. Slippy's voice stopped him as his short friend ran to catch him.

"Hey Fox! I've been meaning to ask you, but where is Rob? I didn't see him in the supply hanger." Rob was a robotic navigator and pilot. He had been constructed by Fox's father to control and fly the Great Fox, during the years that it was operational.

"Oh, um, he is, indisposed, at the moment." Slippy looked puzzled as he responded.

"What do you mean, indisposed?" Fox chuckled before he spoke.

"I mean, he is using his navigational knowledge to make me money. He's running a junkyard, keeping the stuff from falling out of orbit." Slippy burst out laughing.

"Seriously Fox? You hired him off as a garbage manager?" Fox grinned and opened the door to his cabin.

"Sort of. Later Slippy." Slippy rolled his eyes before he trotted away, Fox slipping into his cabin and flopping onto his cot. A knock on the door caused him to jump. Fox moved to open the door, already speaking.

"Damn it, am I not allowed to relax on this damned…" the door opened to reveal Fara on the other side. "Oh hey Fara, need something?" she smiled as he motioned her inside.

"Just wanted to ask if you worked things out with Miyu?" Fox smiled as he dropped back in his bed, Fara lounging in his desk chair.

"Yeah, why do you think I was late? Me and Wolf talked some sense into her." one of Fara's long ears canted to the side as she responded.

"You and Wolf? Together? Wow, didn't realize you two got along." Fox shrugged, rolling onto his back and staring at the ceiling above him.

"We get along, as long as our goals are the same." He clasped his hands behind his head as he continued. "Besides, you are right about him changing. How did you two meet anyway?" she grunted, staying silent for a few seconds to gather her thoughts.

"Well, about eleven months ago, I went in to a police station to check out some local bounties. Ran into Miyu, both of us choosing to go after the same bounty, not that we knew. Miyu was trying to sneak into his little base on foot. I decided to nail as many defenses as I could from the air. Let's just say my ground attack skills, sucked then. Didn't train much for combat. Anyway, Miyu pulled me out of the wreck, and we teamed up. We almost had the guy, when he brought a group of tanks out, backing us into a corner. Suddenly, out of nowhere, these three Wolfens swoop in, blast the tanks apart and start giving us covering fire. We managed to capture the bounty, and Wolf gave us a lift out. Let's just say he promised that we would be meeting again. And that's also when me and Miyu teamed up." Fox smirked as he listened to her.

"So what happened when he tracked you down again?" Fox rolled back onto his side as he watched her.

"Well, he tracked me down in a bar on Corneria. The same bar I found you in. I asked him about you, and he went through your rivalry, all the way back to dogfighting your father. His eye was hurt when James shot him down. Hard to imagine that he was just a seventeen year old kid, and was apparently a pain in your dad's ass in a piece of crap junker. And about Krystal." Fox nodded waiting for her to continue.

"And your relationship?" she smiled as she clearly was still drifting off in memory.

"Three months ago. Called me saying he wanted to talk some things over. His idea of a date was shooting up some pirates from space. Got back to Fachina and forced him on a real date, much to his discomfort." Fox couldn't help but grin at the image of an uncomfortable Wolf, having seen him so often as a cool, collected individual. Fara startled him as she spoke again. "Fox, if I'm allowed to ask, how did you and Krystal meet?" Fox sighed as pain ripped through his chest, right over his heart.

"Almost Four years ago. During the Saurian crisis." Fara, leaned forward, suddenly in rapt attention.

"I remember that. The planet was being forced apart by an unstable subspace field. Threatened most of the Lylat system." Fox nodded and continued.

"Yeah, anyway, Krystal had been in the Lylat system, searching for answers dealing with the destruction of her home. She felt a distress call from the planet and went to investigate. She was captured and locked inside a special crystal prison. Anyway, Pepper had forbidden me to bring a blaster down to the planet. Krystal had lost her staff and I happened to land near it. First time I ever heard her voice, was when I picked up the staff. It had a message stored in it, explaining what the staff was, and that she was most likely in trouble. I heard her voice again, when I was sent on a mission to save her by a local, well, spirit. She was crying out in pain. When I finally found her, well, let's just say her outfit was very skimpy, turns out, Cerinian's don't wear much." Fara laughed as she finally spoke.

"Okay, I'm sorry, this great love of your life was basically an underdressed woman you happened to find? And what do you mean, felt a distress call?" Fox smirked before he spoke, knowing she was clinging to every word.

"Krystal was a telepath. Could read minds, all sorts of stuff like that. And yeah, at first I only liked her because she was sexy. But, honestly, I suppressed it. I actually fought liking her at first. After I saved her life, killed Andross again, who had been behind the whole thing, she asked to join the team. I was hesitant, gave her every opportunity to leave. She insisted on staying. Later told me that she stayed because she could, sense that, I quote, 'I was a great person, and was one of the kindest people she had met.' Apparently, she was actually impressed by me trying to get her to go her own way. In time, it changed from me just liking her looks to, well, falling in love with her." Fara smiled slightly as she spoke.

"Funny, cause I didn't need telepathy to tell me all that. You always were a very kind hearted person, even though you're a bit aggressive at times." Fox scoffed as she spoke, trying to suppress a laugh.

"Aggressive? Naw, Stubborn? Hell yeah." She laughed with him until Fox's sides ached. Fara slowly stood up and patted his shoulder.

"Well, I'm going to go ahead and leave you be. Enough interrogating for one day." Fox smirked as he waved goodbye to her, still smiling as her tail disappeared out the door. Fox's thoughts finally drifted to what had been bugging him for the past few days._ What if Krystal was still alive?_ He racked his brain, trying to figure out if there was any logical conclusion. Kursed did sound and move a lot like Krystal, and as far as Fox could tell, she was the same height too. But at the same time, Fox doubted that the generally kind hearted Krystal he knew couldn't have done some of the things Kursed was rumored to have done. _But that would make the perfect cover, wouldn't it?_ Fox closed his eyes and cursed, mentally kicking himself. _I have Miyu now, and I promised myself and her that I would move on. I need to just drop this line of thought._ But, even after he thought that, he kept thinking of the idea that Krystal was alive, out there, somewhere out in the galaxy, lost and confused.

* * *

><p>Falco slid down the ladder into his heavily modified Arwing, his fingers flying over the holographic controls of his fighter.<p>

"Hey McCloud, how's that old junker working for ya?" Fox's voice came back over the comm line, deep and menacing.

"I may be letting you fly as my wingmen again, but don't push it, bird. I'll still gladly shoot your ass down." Falco grunted as he finished his preflight checks. Fox's voice came back over the radio as he finished. "Alright, all craft, report in?" Slippy's voice was the first to ring out.

"Slippy here, all green and ready to fly!"

"All good here Fox." Fara's voice sounded bored as she spoke.

"Ready to fly Fox, just waiting on your word." Falco sighed as he spoke, trying to be as professional as possible. Fox audibly grunted before he spoke again.

"Alright, remember, all we do is follow whatever order Hamilton's contractor gives, and make sure they come out alive! Star Fox, Move out!" Falco couldn't help but grin as Fox said the last words, reminding him of times long past when he lived and breathed to hear those words. His fighter dropped away from the Tadpole and he easily slipped into formation, just off Fox's starboard wing. Fara and Slippy slipped in behind them as they were hailed by a feminine voice.

"Hey boys! My name, well, it's irrelevant, just call me Peregrine for now! Now, there are two facilities down there, one that is set up as a landing pad for two fighter squadrons and a light weight frigate. The other is the main facility, and that is the one we need to worry about! I need you to hammer it, and clear me a path. Your Arwings will distract the pirates, and should let me slip right in. that simple. Now I need a door, a wall, and every guard you can, blasted too smithereens. Already got the first two marked for ya!" Falco smirked as their fighters shook and vibrated, flame rising past their shields as they dropped into Macbeth's atmosphere. Fox lead the way toward the base, already speaking.

"Fara, use your missiles to hit what she needs hit, fire all four. Slippy, target enemy heavy cannons, Falco, hang back, look for an opportunity to cause massive damage. If those fighters show up, me and Falco will deal with them, go!" Falco pulled up and away from the formation as the three of them speed up. Missile's ripple fired from all three Arwings, slamming into targets all across the structure. A group of infantry clustered together and Falco swooped in, blasting the group apart with his lasers. He glanced at his RADAR, seeing the two dozen red blips near the edge.

"Hey Fox, those fighters are headin our way!" Falco turned his fighter away from the base, rocketing toward the enemy formation.

"Falco, go high, divide and conquer!" he grinned as he pitched his fighter high into the sky. Fox would be doing the same, only hugging the ground now kilometers below Falco. One of the squadrons pitched up after Falco, the other down after Fox. As soon as the group split, Fox and Falco changed course, heading straight at each other. Falco locked onto the fighters aiming toward Fox, setting all ten missiles in his bay to go after a target. As soon as he had solid lock tones, he fired, just as a Nova bomb ripped away from Fox's fighter. Five of Fox's targets disappeared as they ripped past each other. Three of the craft Falco had targeted managed to dodge the missiles fired at them, only to be shredded by weapons fire. Falco smirked as he glanced at the search RADAR, all but seven of the enemy fighters already destroyed. Falco shot the last two of his squadron down as Fox easily destroyed the remaining fighters.

"Just like old times, eh Foxie?" he heard Fox chuckle slightly before he responded.

"Yeah, just like em!" the two of them angled back toward the base.

"Good news, I got the data! Already almost back to my ship, meet yall upstairs!" Falco smiled at the sound of Peregrine's silky smooth voice, pitching up and gunning his engines.


	19. Chapter 18

Fox climbed up the ladder, seeing Falco already out of his fighter, leaning up against the wall. Fara and Slippy were running a little behind them, having gone after the frigate to make sure the pirates couldn't follow. The ship jolted slightly as Fox nodded to Falco, waiting for whoever this Peregrine woman was to climb up out of her ship. Both of them glanced down the boom as one of the ladder bays opened, letting a blue and red female avian step out of it. Fox heard Falco's near silent 'wow' as he stared at the woman. She gracefully trotted over to them, handing Fox a small drive as she spoke.

"Hey, I believe my boss wants you to have this. By the way, name's Jasmine, or just Jas, if you like shorter things. Don't like using my name over the radio. And bird boy, I think you need to catch your beak, seems to be running away from ya." Falco jumped and slammed his beak shut before he responded.

"I, sorry, you're just well…" she cut him off before he could finish speaking.

"Gorgeous? Well, I can see how someone like you could think that, given you look like you just crawled out of a sewer. Anyway, I assume our business here is concluded." Fox couldn't help but snigger as Falco resumed his open mouthed stare.

"Yeah, thanks for the help, hope it was worth it." She was trotting down the boom, back toward the ladder she had used when she suddenly stopped and spun, looking puzzled.

"So, I'm just curious, but what was important enough to bring Star Fox back together?" Falco managed to respond, Fox still trying suppress a snigger.

"An Assassin named Kursed. We're hunting her." Fox elbowed him in the ribs, glaring at him.

"Ah, well good luck, and I'll keep my eye out for anything. I'll pass it to you if I happen to." And with that, she slid down the ladder and out of sight. Now that she was out of earshot, Fox burst out laughing.

"Ah shut up Fox." Falco was glaring at him, the faintest trace of a grin at the edge of his beak.

"Damn Falco, after all you've said to Katt, I never thought I'd ever see you crushin' on someone." Falco punched Fox's arm before Fara suddenly spoke, climbing out of her fighter tube.

"Wait, who has a crush on who?" Fox chuckled slightly as he responded.

"Falco has a crush on Miss Peregrine, or Jasmine, as her real name is." Fara laughed with him as Slippy finished climbing up his ladder.

"So, after all the times you've said no to Katt over the years, someone finally caught your eye? What, was it a Vulpine?" Falco shook his head, glaring at all of them.

"No, she's a bird, now all of you just shut up, I aint got no crush on no one! This bird goes solo!" he stormed off as Fara leaned close to Fox.

"He's crushin' alright."

* * *

><p>Kursed slowly opened her eyes before moving to sit up. Pain ripped through her stomach as someone gently pushed her back down.<p>

"Whooa there girl, settle down, you've been out for a couple days." She smiled up at Matheson as he spoke, his brilliant orange fur seeming even brighter in the brightly lit medical bay.

"How bad was it?" he grimaced as he responded.

"Bad. Made worse by my medical care. Please don't ask me to try that again. You're lucky Oikonny has these pirates in his pocket, otherwise, you'd be dead. We're on Katina's moon, by the way." She nodded and smirked.

"Thank you Matheson." He smiled back at her, gently stroking the side of her face.

"I think it's about time you used my first name. Henry." She grabbed his hand, pressing it against her cheek.

"Okay. Thank you, Henry." He leaned closer to her, his face inches from her. She suddenly got a strange, uncomfortable feeling and jerked away from him. He startled slightly visibly confused.

"Something wrong?" she nodded, still confused. Why was she so bothered by the thought of him kissing her?

"Yeah, I just, I don't know. I don't think I'm ready for that." Matheson nodded as she fought up into a sitting position, leaning on the wall behind the bed for support. She suddenly pulled the Feline into a hug, smiling. "But thank you, for everything. I'd be strung out to dry by now." She heard him chuckle as he released her and moved toward one of the doors.

"I'm going to go find the doc, I'm sure he'd want to know your awake." She nodded and gestured for him to go on, still smiling. As soon as he was gone, the smile evaporated. She wracked her brain, trying to figure out why she didn't let him kiss her. A small voice seemed to respond, out of her own mind. _Because you already love someone else._ Still confused, she tried to figure out who it could be. Her mind bounced between different people she had met since she had awoken, not one seeming to fit the bill, until she remembered one of the few memories that had returned to her, about the man and the small emblem around her neck. Almost like a light had been turned on, she realized that she had loved that man. Her mind drifted to guessing who he was, and more importantly, where was he now? The door slid open to let the Doctor and Matheson through and she shoved her thoughts aside.

"Hello ma-am, glad to see you awake. I just need to run a few tests, just to see how you're doing." She nodded and smiled innocently, not wanting Matheson to know what was running through her mind.

* * *

><p>Jasmine spun in her chair, sipping out of a cup of coffee as she brushed dust away from the comm terminal's interface. The equipment turned on as her thoughts drifted to the bird she had met on her last mission, trying to remember his name. <em>Falco.<em> She smiled as the name came to her, remembering that he had actually been fairly cute. She shook it out of her mind as she tapped a few commands into her console. The comm line began the call and a small image of her in the darkened apartment appeared in the corner of the screen. She watched silently as she fiddled with her feathers, waiting for the call to be answered. A familiar Ape appeared on the screen and her smile broadened.

"Oikonny! You wanted me to call and let you know if Star Fox ever resurfaced? Well, they have. And I I'm fairly sure they are after that new assassin you hired." The ape cursed before he spoke.

"Damn it, why do they have to re appear on the eve of my plan being successful!? What can you tell me about them?!" she smiled as gently as she could.

"Relax Anthony, I think the bird likes me. Just give me some knowledge on Kursed, and I think I can slip into their ranks, feed you intel as often as I can. Maybe even distract them, feed them false intelligence. What do ya say?" the Ape stroked his chin thoughtfully, clearly debating it.

"Alright. Bring it to their attention that she works for me. And see what you can do about slipping into their little posse. If you happen to find a way to sabotage their plans, do it. I will be sending you a way to contact Matheson, Kursed's handler. She must be the one to deal with them." she nodded before she closed off the comlink, reopening it to call the Star Fox team. An unfamiliar Amphibian answered and she was instantly speaking.

"Hey, it's Peregrine. Get anything useful from the data I got you?" He shook his head as he spoke.

"Nah, all we got was stuff on available bounties. Not the one we're looking for." She smiled gently as she spoke.

"Well I did a little digging, and I think I got some stuff for you guys, have somewhere I can meet you?" he nodded as he spoke.

"Um yeah, Katina too far from you? It's where we are launching from right now." She smiled as she spoke further.

"Yeah, that works. Gonna take me a day or two but. Can I talk to Fox please?" he nodded and spoke into the ships inter com. Fox strode in and smiled at her.

"Well hey, didn't expect to hear from you so soon. Got a reason for calling?" she nodded, almost instantly speaking.

"Yeah, I've got a bit of an offer for you. You guys could use a good analyst, and I'm not half bad in a fire fight. How bout I sign on with ya?" she could tell Fox was suppressing a snigger again as he spoke.

"Well, we could use the help. Consider yourself on board. Just to warn ya, food's terrible when Fay aint around." She smiled as she stretched.

"Well, if I'm to make Katina at a decent time, I need to head out. See you soon, McCloud." The two of them waved and she cut the link before letting out a sigh. She had no idea how she was going to keep up an act like this for very long. She shrugged and grabbed her already packed bags, downloading the last of the Data packet Oikonny had sent her. Her feet carried her back out the door, a sad smile stretching across her face as she stepped out of her home once more.


	20. Chapter 19

Fay bit her lip as hesitated at Miyu's door. She didn't even know if what she was about to ask Miyu was appropriate. She took a deep breath and finally knocked on the door, brushing some of her long curly hair out of her eyes. Miyu opened the door and instantly waved her in.

"Hey Fay. How's it going?" she smiled as Fay walked in and sat down in one of the large plush chairs.

"Um, I actually came by to ask you something…." Miyu sighed and dropped back onto her bed, instantly relaxing.

"So out with it you silly dog!" Fay smiled faintly as she took a deep breath to settle her nerves, or at least to try to.

"Um, when did you know that you wanted to go out with Fox?" Miyu sat up as fay spoke, one ear cocked to the side.

"Just after the fight in the cantina, why?" Fay looked down, blood rushing to her checks.

"Um, just been wondering. If I may ask, what made you realize it?" Miyu kept her ear cocked to the side as she dropped her feet off the side of the bed, her elbows resting on her knees as she leaned forward.

"After he saved my life. Took me a bit to realize what I was feeling, but I knew he wasn't what I had originally thought. You dodged my question, so I'm going to assume this has something to do with Bill, don't it?" Fay blushed even more, hiding her face.

"Yes! I just don't know what to do is all!" Miyu burst out laughing, rolling right off her bed with a heavy thunk. "Oh stop it Miyu!" she finally got her laughing under control and sat up, leaning up against the bed, one leg straight out and one bent up.

"Alright, sorry. And it's simple, just go talk to him, and be yourself. Things will work out for ya." Fay bit her lip again, standing up and starting to pace the room.

"But what if that doesn't?" Fay felt Miyu grab her shoulders and stop her, forcing Fay to face her.

"If it doesn't, it doesn't. That's part of life. How do you not know that?" Fay sighed as Miyu spoke.

"Well, I don't usually get out much. Spent too much time working, or studying." Miyu chuckled and patted her shoulder.

"You'll be fine, now get going before you psych yourself out." Fay managed let out a nervous laugh as she moved over to the door.

"Thanks Miyu."

* * *

><p>"Hey Leon, you knew panther real well, right?" Leon jumped at the sound of Bill's voice, knocking the bolt carrier for his sniper rifle onto the ground. He cursed as he picked it up and glanced at bill.<p>

"Wouldn't say we were friends. Why?" he chuckled and sat down across the table form Leon.

"Well, I was hopin that you knew him well enough that he rubbed off on ya, need some, advice." Leon glared at him as he reassembled the sniper rifle, cycling the bolt in the most menacing fashion he could.

"Just spit it out dog, don't got time to for tip toeing." Bill looked around nervously, clearly scared that someone else might hear him.

"Alright, I like Fay, I just don't know what the hell to do about it!" Leon stared at him, utterly bewildered.

"And what the hell are you talking to me for! I find ways to kill people. The less I understand them, the better." Bill glanced around again, clearly nervous about Leon's voice level.

"Because everyone I would ask, aint here. Yeah, I've known Lucy awhile, but she's like a sister, can't talk to Miyu, she'll just tell Fay, Katt, I only know through association, wolf simply scares the living shit outta me, so that leaves you. You gonna help, or not?" Leon swore under his breath.

"Alright, fine, just so you'll leave me alone! I bet panther would tell you to just fuck her, and be done with it! but, you aint no hard type like us, so why don't you just go, I don't know, talk to her or some shit, just leave my ass out of it. Hell, I didn't want to work with any o' yall in the first place!" Bill raised an eyebrow at him, a smirk on his face.

"So you think it could be that simple? And if you didn't want to work with us, why did you?" Leon froze for a second, unsure what to say. He had his reasons, which he wasn't too keen on sharing.

"Yeah, that simple. That's all panther did to get chicks to fuck him. And I don't need to tell you shit about why I'm here!" Bill left his eyebrow raised, simply staring at Leon. "What!?" he chuckled as he spoke, smiling.

"Leon, I know more about you than you think. You used to be a Cornerian sniper. Deep cover one too. When the government needed to do something nasty, to stop something nastier, they sent you. Until command abandoned you as a 'disposable' asset, getting your spotter killed. Then you disappeared off the grid, and reappeared a few years later with Andross's forces. I would assume, you joined us, because you miss the comradery of the military, knowing that the guy beside you has your back. Something that in all your years as a criminal and part of Star Wolf, you never had." Leon froze stunned.

"How did you..?" he cut him off, the smirk stretching into a grin.

"Peppy is an old friend. Pulled some strings to get info on you. The rest, I just deduced from the way you act. How far off am I?" Leon scoffed as he pulled out his blaster, quickly disassembling the weapon for cleaning.

"Regretfully, spot on. But if you breathe a word of it to anyone else, I'll kill you." Bill chuckled and stood.

"Same to you. And thanks for the advice. Just remember one thing. You start backing up the guys around here, and then sometime down the road, you need help, and you'll get it. Just remember that." With that, he disappeared out the door. Leon's eyes fell to his blaster, old memories shooting through his eyes. The door opening startled him, nearly causing him to dump blaster parts on the floor too.

"Hey Leon, you seen Bill lately?" he sighed as Fay poked her head through the door. _Maybe bill is right about these people._

"Yeah, you just missed him. I think he was looking for you, actually." Her fur turned bright red, and he fought to suppress a laugh.

"Oh, um, thanks?" she seemed a little stunned for some reason, but disappeared back out the door.


	21. Chapter 20

Miyu trotted after Kyra, out in the backyard of the manor. She called out to her as soon as she was able to.

"Hey Kyra! Got time to chat?" The girl turned and nodded smiling.

"Miyu hey. It's been a while. How's it going?" they started walking together, moving far out into the open field.

"Well, other than my stupidity, fine. Had a bit of a hiccup with Fox. All settled though." She smiled to Kyra, puzzled when she didn't return it. "Something bothering you?" Kyra absently nodded, clearly not really thinking of their conversation.

"Just really not liking being pulled out of school. Feel like I have nothing to do now." Miyu smirked as she watched her.

"It's not being pulled out of school that's bothering you, is it?" Miyu waited for her to respond, silence being her only answer. "It's Dust, isn't it? You two are together, and your father doesn't know." Kyra looked at her, shocked.

"How did you know that?" Miyu chuckled, patting her on the shoulder.

"Just good at reading people. Plus, why else would you be so nervous around your father and him, and constantly slipping off with him?" Kyra grimaced as she spoke.

"Alright you got me. We've been dating for almost two years. When he left school last year, he intentionally got a job near the school, and tries to take his break during lunch hours. Or he did, until dad decided that neither of us were leaving the property. I just miss being able to spend time with him, alone." Miyu nodded, the two of them sitting up against the wall.

"I can understand that. Why don't you just tell your father? He may be more supportive of it than you think." Kyra shrugged as silence fell between them. The sound of Ion engines caused Miyu to look up, seeing the Tadpole drift by overhead, gracefully landing on the landing pad. "Well, I'm sorry, but I gotta go." She stood and stretched, already moving by the time Kyra called out to her.

"Alright, talk again soon?" Miyu nodded and waved to her, just before taking off at a sprint for the landing pad. She slipped past the retaining wall, just in time to see the Tadpoles ramp lowering. She kept running, seeing Fox talking to what looked like Falco as they marched down the ramp. He reached the bottom of the ramp just as she did, staggering as she launched her arms around him.

"Hey Fox." Fox smiled and hugged her back as the bird beside them spoke, with a feminine voice.

"Well hello there random lady. I'm goin out on a limb and saying you two know each other?" Fox smirked as he responded, closing his fingers around Miyu's.

"You could say that. Miyu, this is Peregrine. Or Jasmine, as her real name is. She's signing on as a data analyst." Miyu held her free hand out for the bird to shake it. She accepted it as Miyu spoke.

"You know, I almost mistook you for Falco back there." She chuckled as Falco marched past, waving to Miyu. Funnily enough, his eyes never left the bird.

"I can't see how. For one, I'm actually good looking." She winked at Miyu before she trotted off.

"So Fox, have fun?" he smiled as they walked off the landing pad together.

"If you consider taking on large numbers of inferior fighter craft with a pair of Arwings fun, then yes." Miyu chuckled as she rested her head on his shoulder, suddenly feeling much safer with him around.

* * *

><p>Fara trotted down the ramp of the Tadpole, following Slippy and Amanda off. She looked around puzzled. She had been expecting at least Wolf or Miyu to be waiting for her, but Miyu was walking with Fox and Wolf was nowhere to be seen. She sighed as she marched down the ramp. Katt's voice startled her and she glanced up to see her, waiting at the bottom of the ramp.<p>

"Hey Fara, who's the new gal?" she jerked her thumb after the female bird's retreating figure.

"Oh, new ally, name's Jasmine." She nodded as they walked off the landing pad together. "So where's Wolf, or Fay for that matter?" Katt grinned as she guided her toward the main house.

"Poor Wolf has been being worked to death managing the security forces. Fay just disappeared about an hour ago, with bill." Fara scoffed as the door opened for them. Katt lead her through the house into a security room. Wolf was in one of the chairs, snoring loudly. Fara chuckled as Katt left, gently shaking him awake.

"Good afternoon, sleepy head." Wolf stirred awake and smiled.

"Hey beautiful. When did you get back?" she couldn't help but grin as she kissed his cheek.

"A few minutes ago. You look like you could use some coffee. Wolf grimaced as his eyes closed again.

"Yeah, probably." She dragged him out of the chair as he groaned in protest. "Why cant I just stay in my chair?" she grinned as she continued to drag him out of the room.

"Come on you great lazy oaf, we're getting some coffee." He groaned again as he shambled after her.

"Ya know, if I didn't like you so dang much, I would've shot you by now." She just grinned as they entered the kitchen. Wolf leaned up against the counter rubbing his organic eye. She started brewing a pot of coffee as he folded the glass plate over his cybernetic eye out of the way. The eye glowed an eerie red and the skin around it was torn and damaged from the shrapnel that had destroyed his eye. She had seen under the plate before, and wasn't disturbed by it at all anymore.

"Fake eye bothering you again?" he nodded as he rubbed the fake one too.

"Yeah. Been bothering me ever since the Aparoid threat." She sighed as the coffee finished brewing.

"You really should get it checked out. It's almost always bugging you." He folded the plate back in place as he spoke.

"Oh it's fine. Dang thing still works doesn't it?" she handed him a cup as he continued. "Anyway, get anything on Kursed?" she nodded as they both took a sip of the steaming hot liquid.

"Yeah. Found out she works for Oikonny. Fox thinks he's up to something, again." Wolf raised an eyebrow at her and she continued. "If the CDF doesn't accept this deal with Ashlyn, the new weapon systems go on the open market. Any hacker worth their salt could easily steal the designs and start building them. Fox thinks that he wants them on the open market, or at least find a way to steal them." Wolf nodded and downed the last of his coffee, staring dreamily at the still full pot.

"So, no one knows where Oikonny is. Any plans on how we stop Kursed?" Fara smiled as she took his mug and refilled it.

"Well, there is an old Venomian base on Titania. May still have access to their battle net. Going to go check it out. We're only stopping by to pick up some supplies." Wolf nodded as he accepted the fresh mug and downed it just as fast as the first. "How are you doing here?" he grimaced as he spoke.

"Just peachy. Constantly been hounded by Ashlyn's security chief, and I've had the others off so they could relax, not that Leon ever leaves that tower. Fairly sure he's set up a bunk up there. Gonna have to put everyone back on alert through, I doubt we've seen the last of Kursed. Fara nodded as they rinsed their mugs off.

"Yeah, probably not. Well, come on, you get to relax for a few hours." He groaned again as she dragged him out, only this time, with a small smile at the edges of his lips.

* * *

><p>Fay looked up at Bill, across the booth from her and smiled. He returned it as they continued to eat their late lunch. Mr. Ashlyn's daughter had recommended the small Café in the nearby town to her, after she accidently said she wanted to spend some time with Bill. Both of them had been silent for most of the late lunch, but somehow, it didn't bother her at all. Bill suddenly set his fork down as he spoke to her.<p>

"I never asked but, did your arm heal up well enough?" she smiled and nodded, her mouth still full of food. "How'd you get hurt, if I may ask?" she swallowed the food before speaking.

"We got ambushed by Kursed. She got lucky and punched a round through the table we were hiding behind." Bill smirked as he slid his empty plate away from them. "How'd that leg do?" he absently glanced down as he responded.

"Oh, Doc said it was the best field care he'd seen since the Lylat wars. Still have hairline fractures around my eye though. Doc didn't want me flying, but nothing short of killing me will keep me out of the sky." She tried to smile as an awkward silence fell between them. "So, when did you decide to become a pilot?" Fay's eyes drifted out the window as she spoke.

"Peppy Hare and my dad were old school friends. I had always dreamed of joining Star Fox one day because of all of the wild tales and adventures he spoke of. Dad on the other hand, didn't want me too. So I finally decided to go to nursing school, after years of bouncing between dead end jobs and pleading my dad to let me go to flight school. Then Dad was killed and Peppy asked Fara to watch over me. Said he'd met her years ago, through Fox, and well, Fara taught me how to fly, Miyu taught me how to shoot. What about you?" he grunted as he waved off her question before he responded.

"Nah, I doubt you're interested in my boring life." Fay raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh alright. After Fox's mother died, Fara's parents offered to watch Fox whenever James would get work. Fara's mother, Marsha, knew Vixy pretty my parents moved to Corneria, me and Fara ended up next door neighbors, so as you would imagine, we grew up together. If we weren't at Fara's house, we were at Fox's or mine. We would all hear stories from James about being a mercenary and it kinda just called to me and Fox. Fara, well, she was always too loyal to Corneria to really want to be a mercenary, but the flying did interest her. When James died, Peppy took over Fox's care. As soon as we were old enough, we signed up for the academy. Fara was livid with us, mainly because she knew we intended to leave and become mercenaries but, I ended up falling in love with the comradery of the military. So when Fox left to reform Star Fox, and asked me to come with, I couldn't." Fay listened intently, hanging on his every word.

"So how did you become a squadron commander?" Bill smirked as his eyes seemed to glass over.

"I was stationed here on Katina, where I was born. I was assigned to Husky Squadron. During the initial attack, my squad leader was killed, and so was Bulldog's. I don't know why, but my squad mates and the bulldogs shoved me up into command of the teams. After the war, Pepper promoted me to Commander and left the two squads under my command." Fay's smile faded as she watched him stare emptily into his water glass.

"And they were with you when you were captured." He nodded, confirming her statement. "Look, I'm sorry Bill." He shrugged as he responded.

"Don't worry about it, you didn't pull the trigger. Two of my pilots managed to bail, and a third crash landed without too much trouble. Actually part of my new unit. My wing man survived too, just, well, badly injured." Fay gently squeezed his hand as she spoke.

"Hey, not everyone died. Take what comfort is there." He smiled as the door opened behind him. Her hand shot back to her side of the booth as Fara and Wolf strode in, laughing with each other. Fara saw them and waved to them.

"Hey guys, mind if we join you?" Fay shriveled up a little as she responded.

"Not really, I wasn't aware you guys were back yet." Fara shrugged as she dropped into the seat beside Fay, Wolf dropping beside Bill and looking around nervously.

"Oh Wolf, cut it out, you look around all nervous like that and people _will _notice you. Anyway, what's good here?" Fay shrugged as Bill responded.

"Everything. What brings yall back so soon?" Fara smirked as she browsed through the menu.

"Supplies mostly. We got a good lead so. And Falco has a crush now." Fay felt blood rush to her cheeks at the word 'crush'.

"Really? How the hell…?" Fara cut him off, dropping the menu onto the table.

"Oh some new data analyst we picked up. She's an Avian, just like him." Bill chuckled, glancing at Fay and realizing how uncomfortable she was. He stayed silent, a small smile spreading across his face as he watched Fay.

"Well, you're being quiet today Fay?" Fay startled slightly as Wolf spoke.

"Oh, I, um, just haven't known Falco long enough for me to understand what's so funny about it." Fara chuckled and patted her shoulder.

"Oh you will soon enough." Fay attempted to smile as Bill spoke to her.

"So you knew Peppy really well, ever meet Fox before any of this?" she shook her head before she responded.

"No, not really. And after Fox reformed the Star Fox team, we almost never saw him." Bill nodded as Fara chuckled slightly.

"Going over personal history now?" Bill shrugged as he responded for her.

"Getting to know your team mates improves unit cohesion. It's a good thing to do, no matter what team you end up with." Fara raised an eyebrow at him and shrugged.

"Huh, I'd forgotten how into this military thing you got. Not the same ol' Bill you used to be." He grunted as he responded.

"Nah, he's in there. Just don't come out much." Fara grinned, almost manically.

"Well, I feel sorry for your team mates, and hope you've changed your night time wardrobe, for their sake." Bill was laughing hysterically as the waiter came back around, Wolf catching her attention.


	22. Chapter 21

"And where do you think you are going?" Kursed froze as she was strapping her recently repaired armor back on, Matheson's voice startling her. He leaned up against the med bay wall as she responded.

"Just a little trip. I can't stand sitting around here any longer." He helped her work some of the harder to reach clasps and handed her the cloak. She smiled as she accepted it, about to step by him when he spoke.

"You're going after Ashlyn again." She glared at him, letting that be her only response. "Kursed you aren't even fit to fly." She shoved him off as she stepped out, him following like a lost puppy dog.

"Look, I'll be fine. Couple of strafes, and no more Ashlyn. Just blow the whole damn manor apart." He sighed as he followed her through the halls.

"Fine, then I'm going with you."

* * *

><p>"Hey, so I guess you're the new gal." Jasmine jumped as the woman's voice startled her. She spun to face her, blacking out the screen on her computer.<p>

"Oh, hey, didn't hear you come in. I'm Jas." She held her hand out to the slender grey and brown rabbit. The rabbit smirked as she accepted the hand.

"Lucy, Astro-physicist, daughter of General Hare, and occasional scout for hire." Jas returned her smirk and spoke as she settled into back into her chair.

"Pleasure to meet you. How'd you end up out here?" she sat down on the bed as she responded.

"Oh, Fox, Fara, Slippy, they're all old friends of mine. More younger siblings, actually. Anyway, why so dark in here. You have lights you know." Jas smirked as she looked around.

"I don't know. Darkness just makes me feel safer. What brings you around here?" Lucy glanced around the room, her eyes clearly having finally adjusted to it.

"Well, you're a hacker, I know how space likes to mess with things. So I thought I might be able to help out. Give you a little boost to whatever signal you use." She scoffed as she responded.

"I know how to handle my stuff, thank you. But I wouldn't mind if you'd answer a few questions for me?" Lucy leaned forward as she answered, one of her long ears canting over.

"About?"

"Well, that other Avian. Falcon or whatever his name is." She chuckled as she responded.

"It's Falco. And he's a bit of a cocky ass to be honest. But, once you earn his loyalty, you will never get a better friend. Even if he picks on them a little." She smiled as she powered the screen back on and finished hacking into the main overland bundle for Katina. From there, she had access to the subspace comm lines.

"He sounds like my kind of guy actually." Lucy burst out laughing.

"Well, that explains you teasing him. If you want to get to know him, cut the teasing and ask him to teach you how to fly." She stopped again as she spun back around to face Lucy.

"Seriously, I already know how to fly! Fairly well, I'd think!" Lucy grinned as she stood up, headed for the door.

"Yeah, he doesn't need to know that though." She placed her hand on the door knob as the ground suddenly shook violently. "What the…" her voice stopped as she opened the door, revealing the raging inferno that the Manor had been turned into.

* * *

><p>Fox sprinted out of Miyu's Bungalow, shocked at the ragging inferno before him. Leon's figure was sprawled on the lawn, not far from them. He tried to stagger to his feet and collapsed again. A sudden shout drew his attention as a figure sprinted out of the bungalows for the house.<p>

"Dust! Dad!" Miyu darted past Fox and yanked her back, holding her as she collapsed onto her knees. Fox rushed over as she continued to wail. "My dad, Dust, they're both still in there!" Fox nodded as he grabbed her shoulders.

"Look, Kyra, I need you stay here. Miyu, I'll be right back." neither one of them got a chance to speak as he took off running. A small hexagonal device slipped out of its pouch on his belt and he activated it. A blue sphere appeared around him, shielding him from the flames as he ran through the house. Coughing from the sitting room drew his attention, just barely loud enough to him to hear. He slid to a stop beside Mr. Ashlyn and Dust. He checked Dust for a pulse as Ashlyn writhed in pain. Dust's pulse was weak but there.

"I'm going to get both of you out of here! Just hang on sir!" Ashlyn's leg had been crushed by a support beam. Dust seemed to have been just knocked out by falling chunks. Fox strained against the beam, trying to get it to budge.

"Just get Dust out of here! That barrier will only last a few more seconds in here!" Fox hollered as he continued to try to lift the beam.

"Respectfully sir, I aint leaving without both of you!" Fox cursed as the hot metal slipped from his hands.

"I hired you Fox, you follow my orders. Get. Him. Out of here!" Fox cursed and nodded grabbing one of Dusts arms and slinging it over his shoulder.

"I'm going to be right back sir!" he waved him off, the barrier starting to turn red around Fox.

"Damn it, just go!" Fox half dragged Dust's unconscious body through back through the house. Flames blocked the door out, just as the barrier failed.

"Damn it!" Fox was bathed in heat as he looked around, sweat already drenching his fur and evaporating. A window was not fully covered in flame and he charged at it, smashing through. They both tumbled in the singed grass as they landed on shards of glass. Fox staggered to his feet, dragging Dust after him as he coughed incessantly. Distant voices screamed as Fox looked up just in time to see the fighter craft streak in and let loose a missile. Fox was blasted off his feet as the missile tore into the Manor, detonating right over the sitting room. He managed to crawl back to his feet, just before he collapsed to his knees with another coughing fit. Feathered fingers wrapped around his arm as Falco hauled him to his feet and away from the burning house. He was set on the lawn, staring up at the black smoke filling the sky, tainted red from the heat of the flames.

"Damn it Fox, what were you thinking!" Miyu slid over to him, wrapping her arms around him. He hugged her back as he watched Fay do CPR on Dust, Kyra still wailing beside them. He could barely hear dust take a breath as Fay dropped away from him, smiling.

"Fox! Where's Ashlyn!" Fara and Wolf slid to a stop in the grass beside him.

"He's gone." Fara cursed as Wolf grabbed his own barrier generator, clearly intending to charge into the burning rubble to find the man. "Wolf, it's a damned death trap in there! Ashlyn was right under that missile blast."

"Fuck! I'm going after her, just stay put Fox." He slipped the barrier back in his pouch and toke off up the Tadpole's ramp.


	23. Chapter 22

Miyu stepped out of the tent the fire department had set up to try to get a breath of fresh air, only to realize that the stench of brunt flesh was permeating the entire grounds. She watched as men dug through the still smoking rubble as the sun finally crested over the horizon. At least twelve people had been killed in the mansion, and the three found were literally fused to what remained from the building. She grimaced before she stepped back into the tent, sitting next to where Fox was sleeping on one of the makeshift cots. His hands had been severely burned trying to pull the steel beam off of Ashlyn. Parts of his fur were singed from the flames and he had multiple adhesive bandages over cuts from glass shards. She stroked his cheek as she looked around the room. Jas had been lightly burned when she tried to pull a body guard out of the edge of the flames. Most of her feathers were blackened. Dust was in similar condition to Fox, and covered in ash. Kyra was curled up with him sound asleep, her face still wet from crying most of the night. Falco had gone with Wolf, and neither one was back yet. Fara paced by the entrance to the tent, waiting for Wolf to return. The others were uninjured and weren't in the tents. Wolf suddenly marched through the door way, startling Fara. She wrapped her arms around him as Miyu shook Fox awake.

"Did you two get her?" he shook his head as Fara spoke, just before he sank into one of the chairs.

"No. we chased her across the planet. Falco actually managed to catch up to her, hit her shields a little before she broke atmo. Went straight to warp. Sorry that I didn't come by sooner. Been working with Amanda to try to see where she was heading, but it was just a random jump." Miyu glanced over at Dust, who had sat up as much as he could to listen.

"Damn it, this girl keeps getting the best of us!" Miyu jumped slightly as Fox slammed his fist into the cot. Katt slipped into the tent at the sound of his shout. "Peregrine! Do your computer thing and find where the hell she is!" Jas nodded and walked from the tent. Katt stared at her as she left, a confused expression on her face.

"Um Fox, did you just call her Peregrine?" he nodded and her eyes widened. "Um, will you step outside for a second?" Miyu helped him to his feet and followed him out of the tent. Katt glanced at Miyu and shrugged before she spoke. "You need to get her off this team, now." Fox gave Miyu a puzzled glance before he spoke.

"Why?" She glanced around nervously, letting a pair of fire fighters pass before she spoke.

"Because she is the reason I can't walk the straight and narrow, as you and Falco asked me too. I tried, really, I did. I was on Fortuna, about to put in a job application when I got a message from an old friend. A bounty had been place on my head, along with the rest of me and Falco's old gang. Charges on him apparently didn't stick. Anyway, I ran, few weeks later, I got another message with a notice of my bounty attached. All it said was, 'did I get you?' and the author's name, Peregrine." Miyu glanced at Fox, expecting him to be shocked.

"Look, whatever your past with this woman, we need her. If you want to ask her about your bounty, then go ahead, but she is as much a part of this team as you. We need her. If you can't deal with that, I'll give you all the fuel you can carry, you can take your ship, and you can leave." Katt cursed softly before she spoke.

"Fox you aren't understanding what I am saying, she is dangerous Fox" he growled and Miyu stepped in between them.

"Whoa there you two, Katt, let's go talk to her, I'm sure it was just a job. Fox, just go back inside." He growled, but complied as Katt glared at her. "Well, come on."

* * *

><p>Jas jumped as someone spoke behind her.<p>

"Um, Jasmine, Katt has something she needs to ask you." She spun in her chair to face them as her screen flicked through images by the thousands.

"Yeah, whats up?" she tried to relax as Katt spoke.

"So, Peregrine, huh? Ever put some bounties on an old gang? Maybe seven years ago?" she let a puzzled look cross her face.

"Wait you used to roll with Free-As-A-Bird? Ah crap, I'm sorry, I was low on work and this rival gang hired me to ruin your gang. I slipped your bounties in with a group of pirates, and no one ever noticed or cared. Look, I'm sorry, it was just a job, look I can fix It." she spun in her chair and punched a few keys. After a few minutes, she brought up the Cornerian bounty index and searched her name. It popped up on the screen, pardon stamped over her picture.

"How the hell did you do that?" Miyu was the one speaking.

"Oh, simple. I sent bounty control a memo from Peppy saying you are working for him and should be pardoned. I also sent him a message with the memo and an explanation." Katt was still glaring at her as she responded.

"I've spent seven years of my life, avoiding my friends, ducking bounty hunters and running from the law, and you think erasing my bounty makes it right?" She sighed and was about to speak when her console beeped at her.

"Wait, hold that thought." She tapped a few keys and an audio file came up on her screen as she ran a trace.

"Jobs done. Ashlyn is dead. What now sir?" a male voice spilled from the terminal, one she knew belonged to Matheson.

"Good. Tell Kursed her next target. I'm sending you a data packet now. Good luck." She quickly tapped keys, heavily encrypting the data packet as she intercepted it, hopefully stopping Star Fox from seeing it. And giving her an excuse to be decrypting it.

"Wait, go back in that recording!" she did so and Miyu stopped her. "Look, they made a mistake in the encryption. Right there, says, 'Corneria'. Oh god, her next target is somewhere on Corneria. Peppy. She's going after Peppy." Jas looked up from the console, confused.

"How could you know that?" Miyu looked at her for a second before speaking.

"Oikonny wants those weapons blueprints, we already determined that. Killing Peppy would send the military into disarray. A scrambling military is easy to divide it and conquer it. And we know he's been upgrading his ships from when he ambushed Fara a few weeks ago." Jas knew that was his eventual plan, but tried to keep an innocent expression as she responded.

"But, that's insane! After the Aparoid threat, well he can't have many ships at all. One Cornerian battle group could probably beat him." Miyu shook her head as she spoke.

"No, I know I'm right. Get working on decrypting that data, Katt, come on. We need to talk to Fox."

* * *

><p>Fox sighed as he listened to Katt and Miyu speak. He opened up the Holo terminal in front of them and started linking into a subspace buoy.<p>

"Best we can do right now is warn peppy. I'm calling him." The others nodded and he was about to hit the call button when a quiet voice startled all of them.

"I want to go to Corneria." Fox glanced up to see Kyra standing in the doorway.

"What?" she stepped into the room as she spoke, taking over the Holo-table.

"Look, you guys said that this rebel, Oikonny, wanted my dad's weapon designs on the open market, so he could steal them. The best way to insult him now, would be to make sure that the CDF accepts the designs. I turn eighteen tomorrow. Legally, by the time I reach Corneria, I can negotiate a deal. I own most of the company, with dad being gone." Fox sighed, knowing she just wanted to help.

"Kyra, even if you could legally try, how are you going to convince the War Council? You're just a kid, and last I checked, we don't have the designs on hand." She smiled as she held up a small drive, plugging it into the table.

"My Fathers weapons. He's been showing me the designs and explaining them to me for years." She brought up a hologram of one of the weapons as he spoke.

"One of the largest downsides to plasma weapons is limited ammunition. You need matter to ionize and sling down the barrel. Hence why the Cornerian military uses lasers. My dad created a hybrid weapon. It's designed to operate on Hydrogen, helium, or depleted uranium. Obviously, the depleted uranium works best." The entire group looked at her, not understanding what she meant. She rolled her eyes as she continued. "Magnetic shields, what happens when you shoot them with a solid slug?" Wolf instantly answered.

"The round pings off, but usually drops the shielding, more so than a laser that is, or even fries the capacitors, preventing the shield from coming back." she nodded and continued.

"So what makes plasma so powerful, is that it has the mass of a solid slug, but the high heat of a laser, letting it burn through hull armor. So the high mass depleted uranium works best. Again, the biggest problem is ammo, although they are much harder to power as well. My dad uses a laser to ionize the plasma, and magnetic rails to fire it. More speed, more range. One of the other downsides, is that it drifts apart at range. But, imagine a weapon that can switch between conventional lasers and plasma? That is what he created." Falco spoke up before she could speak.

"So these Hybrid cannons can fire both plasma and lasers? So when they run out of plasma shells, they can switch to lasers?" she nodded and continued.

"Yes. Now when he designed these guns, he had one major problem. Power. Cornerian Warships generally have a reserve power they can divert to needed areas during combat. Even with the reserve power, the ship would not be able to fire all of the guns as plasma weapons. They needed more power to fire than the conventional lasers. He's been working for years to solve that problem, and these new designs fixed it. The capacitors use kinetic chargers that are run off the ships power, multiplying the energy sent to the weapon. Thus, reducing the power draw on the main generator. He got it down to about seven percent more draw than a standard laser." Katt put her hand up and Kyra stared at her.

"Um, kinetic chargers?" Kyra sighed before she spoke.

"Yes, every few seconds, the relay blasts a reflector panel with energy. This causes the drum connected to the panel to rotate. Friction from it spinning generates static electricity, which charges the capacitors for the magnetic rails. It means a lowered fire rate, but much less energy consumption." Fox suppressed a grin as he spoke.

"How much lower of a fire rate, and how do these reflector panels work as far as maintenance of the weapon system?" she stared at him, clearly getting frustrated.

"One round every two seconds versus one to three seconds. And the reflectors do need replacing, just as focusing crystals do for laser cannons. The whole drum assembly comes out as one piece, making replacement easy, even in the heat of battle." The holographic image showed the gun on a ship move to a neutral position, then the entire magnetic rail assembly slid back into the ship for maintenance. Wolf seemed to catch on to what Fox was doing as he spoke.

"Alright, when it's firing lasers, how does it compare to the standard armament on this vessel?" her fists started to clench and unclench.

"The lasers are designed off of Arwing lasers. If you overclock the power converters, and they become incredibly powerful. Hyper lasers as fighter jocks like to call them. Just like the Arwings, the lasers are designed to handle being overclocked for entire battles. And at standard power settings, they burn about fifty percent hotter than standard ship based cannons." Fox tapped on a few keys for the table, bringing the comm line back up, General Hare on the screen.

"Well Peppy, what do ya think?" most of the room was flicking between Peppy and Fox, highly confused.

"Well, other than having to figure out what was going on, I say she sold those guns well. I'll do my best to support her. And Kyra, I'm sorry for your loss. Jeremiah Ashlyn was a great man. He helped design the weapons for the Great Fox." Kyra looked between Fox and Peppy.

"Wait you were testing me this whole time?" Fox nodded as he responded.

"Well, I'm fairly sure Katt's question was legitimate. And I think Wolf there caught on. You really seem to know your stuff." She smirked as she responded.

"Well, let's just say that archery range wasn't for Dust." The group laughed as peppy spoke.

"I can have the meeting moved to any date you like Miss Ashlyn." She nodded clearly thinking.

"Whenever we can get there. That's when I want it to happen. The sooner, the better." Slippy spoke up first.

"We need to sort some stuff out here before we go. Bill's fighter hauler got hit as Kursed made a break for it, so we need to repair it. Should only be a few days." Fox nodded as he spoke.

"So that's the plan. Fara, Wolf, get airborne. Eight hours shifts till we launch. Everyone else, rest. Kyra, get your data solid. Cornerian laser cannons firing at about zero point six-nine rounds per second. That's better than one round every two seconds. They will pick you apart for something like that. And peppy, up your guard. We think Kursed is after you." The group nodded as one and split off to do different tasks.


	24. Chapter 23

"Hey Falco, got some free time?" Falco jumped as Jasmine's smooth voice filled the room.

"Damn, you scared me. Depends on what it's for." He spun in his chair to face her, where she was leaning up against the door frame. Her feathers were finally clean with a small sheen to them, as they had been when he had first seen her

"I'm not exactly a good pilot. Good enough to get by but, you know. You being the little group's 'ace pilot' and all, thought you could give me a few pointers." Falco stood and pulled his jacket on, gesturing for her to lead the way out.

"I hope that junker of yours is a damn sight more maneuverable than it looks." She smirked as they walked out into the tail boom of the ship.

"It's not. But Fara gave me permission to fly her Arwing. Shouldn't be too hard to keep up then." Falco grinned as a heat seemed to rise up in his chest.

"Um, okay. There's a good canyon range not far from here. Race you there." She returned his smile just before sliding down the ladder that led to Fara's fighter. Falco slid down his and fired up the Sky Claw. He felt every bit of tension and stress from the past couple days simply melt away with the hum of its powerful engine. The fighter dropped slightly as he disconnected the clamp and shot away from the Manor's rubble. The desert land scape ripped past beneath him as Fara's fighter launched off after him, unable to keep up with the Sky Claw's shear speed. He finally throttled back to let her catch up as he watched.

"Damn that thing is fast! Where did you get it?" Falco laughed as he responded.

"The Sky Claw is one of a kind! Modified her myself from an X-03 Arwing." He backed off from her and set his fighter into training mode. "Set your fighter into training mode, then let's have us a one on one. Just so I know where you're at." He heard her grown over the radio.

"Alright, I'm ready." He grinned as he gunned after her. She shrieked and dropped altitude, trying to keep him off her to no avail. If anything, it gave him a quick easy kill.

"Aw come on, you can do better than that!" he heard her growl over the radio before shooting down into the canyon. Falco rocketed after her, sending white training lasers after her. Each round missed and hit the canyon walls, doing nothing to them. They raced around bend after bend, Falco only getting glimpses of her fighter. He smirked as he typed a few commands into his controls, bringing all of his G-diffusers online and ramming the throttle all the way forward. Turns and corners ripped past at ever increasing speeds, until his ship suddenly shook violently. A kill popped up on Jasmines side and Falco smirked. She had pulled out of the canyon and waited for him to pass before firing on him. "Alright, that's better! Thought you said you were a bad pilot?" he heard her laugh before she responded.

"If I can't out fly you, I might as well out smart you! Plus, I'm a fast learner." He grinned as he pitched up and out of the canyon, racing after her again.

"Well, let's see how fast you learn!"

* * *

><p>Fox paced back and forth in the small briefing room of Tadpole. Bill's crew had given them the all clear for combat, and Kyra had already been picked up by the small ship. Fara marched in with Wolf on her arm, the two of them laughing about something.<p>

"Fara, where the hell is Falco! We should have been gone an hour ago!" She smirked as she responded.

"Oh, he's out 'teaching' Jasmine how to fly." Fox rolled his eyes as he dropped into one of the chairs, his arms crossed.

"Well, somebody tell those two damned birds to get their asses back here!" Fara typed commands into the console as Miyu marched in.

"There, I told them we are casting off and I want my Arwing back." Fox nodded and closed his eyes, resting his head on the wall. Fingers interlaced with his as Miyu spoke.

"Hey Fox. Are you alright?" He glanced up as Wolf and Fara left the room, leaving the two of them alone.

"No. I… I just feel like no matter what we do, this… woman, Kursed, she is always one step ahead of us! I just want to rip her head off by now!" Miyu leaned away from him, a puzzled fear showing on her face.

"Um, Fox?" he sighed and let his head drop into his hands.

"I'm sorry, just keeping thinking of all the people she has killed, Fay's dad, all those people on the asteroid city, not that they were innocent but. Ashlyn, his guards, and now we think she's after peppy? I just can't let her hurt him. No matter what it takes." He felt her arms wrap around him as a single tear slid out of his eye.

"Hey, we'll stop her, okay? You haven't failed before, you won't start now." Fox sighed as he wrapped his own arms around her.

"And what if we don't? Peppy has been the closest thing to a father I've had since dad was killed." She held him at arm's length as she smiled.

"First, we won't fail, second, if we do, we will chase her to the ends of the galaxy until we bring her down. She will not win Fox." He nodded and pulled her back into a hug, just holding her for the next few minutes. "Come on, Lucy and fay were cooking something up in the galley, and I'm sure you're hungry." Fox nodded and wiped tears from his eyes before he followed her out of the room.

* * *

><p>Katt sealed the airlock behind her as the ramp folded up off the ground. She was about to turn down the hall toward her cabin when Falco's voice stopped her.<p>

"Ya know, that was some pretty impressive flying back there." Katt's heart leapt up into her throat as Falco walked out of the tail boom, one arm around jasmines shoulder.

"Oh, you were going easy on me!" she gently punched his chest before resting her head on his shoulder. Katt's fists tightened as she glared at the two of them.

"Oh, hey Katt!" Falco was grinning like an idiot and she let her glare intensify.

"Falco." He stopped, staring at her in utter bewilderment.

"What's wrong Katt?" he had gotten far enough that he was now between her and her cabin. She shoved past him as she marched away, rage coursing through her veins.

"You are, asshole." She heard Jasmine speak as she slid into her room.

"What's her problem?" Katt hesitated on closing the door, curious as to what Falco would say.

"I don't know, she's had this childish crush on me since we were teenagers. Guess she lied when she said she was over it." Rage forced its way back up as she slammed her fist on the door switch. Her body collapsed into her bunk. Tears streamed from her eyes as wild thoughts ran through her mind.

_Why her? He just met her, when I've known him for years! She hasn't shown anything to him to say she cares about him or anything, so why pick her over me!_ She rolled over in her bed, trying to fight back her thoughts and just clear her mind. _She choose her because he had never found you attractive. You were always just a friend to him._ More tears streamed out as the seemingly calm thought drifted across her mind. A knock at the door startled her and she rolled out of her bed, slamming her fist onto the switch.

"Falco, just screw off, I…" her voice froze as she realized it was Fox and Miyu waiting outside her door. "Oh, I'm sorry, come in." she stepped out of the way and slumped back onto her bed.

"So what did Falco do to earn a reception like that? From you of all people." Fox's voice was surprisingly calm, given she had just hollered at him.

"Just that damned peregrine woman." Miyu responded her voice puzzled.

"But, what does she have to do with Falco?" Fox spoke up again before Katt could.

"Because Katt loves Falco. And I would assume that miss jasmine is now more than Falco's friend, which would be the first girl he has gone for in the entire time I have known him. And that's heart breaking to you, isn't it?" Katt nodded as more tears flooded out of her eyes.

"Yeah, something like that." She rolled over, facing the wall. Someone sat on her bed and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, we're always here for you Katt. I gotta head up to the bridge. Slippy wants me to help him fly the Tadpole for some reason." The weight left the bed after Fox spoke. She didn't respond as the door opened.

"If it's alright, I want to stay here." Katt was about to tell Miyu to leave too when she realized that she really didn't want to be alone.

"Please stay." She felt a new hand rest on her shoulder as Fox spoke again.

"I'll be back, hopefully shortly." The door closed as he left, tears slowly staining the sheets on her bed.


	25. Chapter 24

Miyu watched from the bridge of the Tadpole as the ship decelerated, the warp drive shutting down. Fox spoke and her attention shifted to him

"Alright, one last run through of the plan. Bill will remain in orbit with the ships while a shuttle takes Kyra and Dust to the surface." Dust had insisted on going with her. "Wolf, Fara, Falco and Slippy will fly over watch at the meeting point. Peppy is already there. Leon, Katt, Lucy, and Fay will be flying cover for the ground convoy taking Kyra to the building. Myself and Miyu will act as the main interceptors, if Kursed is spotted, we engage. Jasmine, you will remain docked to the Tadpole. If someone is shot down, you extract them. Any last minute questions?" no one spoke as Miyu glanced around the group. "Good. Star Fox, Phoenix Fire, Star Wolf. Move out!" she followed Fox out of the room and into the tail boom. She hesitated as the others all slid down into their fighters, her eyes following Fox before she did the same. She slowly fired up her systems before she finally spoke into her radio.

"Hey Fox, am I coming through loud and clear?" her fighter dropped away from the Tadpole as he responded.

"Affirmative Miyu. Just form up and follow me." She absently nodded as she did so. The group drifted apart as Fox flew in a wide circle around the area. Katt's group circled around Bill's fighter hauler with Bill and his fighters. Wolf's group shot off toward the planet, instantly headed for the meeting point. The shuttle arrived and Fox led the way, keeping almost two kilometers between themselves and the shuttle. Boredom started to set in already as Miyu followed Fox into the atmosphere. The shuttle landed without any incident and Miyu started thinking Kursed wasn't going to make any kind of appearance today.

"Anything Fox" she saw him visibly shake his head before he spoke.

"Not a thing." Bill's voice suddenly filled the radio, frantic.

"Kursed is here! She's already blown the Valiance apart, three of my pilots are already down!" Miyu was already pitching up and away as Fox responded.

"Rodger that Bill, on our way!"

* * *

><p>Kursed only half listened to Matheson as she waited for the last few minutes of the Warp jump to finish.<p>

"Alright, remember, General Hare is still your primary target, but, if you can kill Ashlyns daughter, it will go a long way too." She sighed as the timer dropped to less than a minute.

"I know, will you just shut up and let me concentrate?" he grunted down in the hold before he continued.

"Look, I'm sorry about making you uncomfortable when I tried to kiss you, it just felt right, okay?" she rolled her eyes again as she responded.

"We've been over this before, it doesn't matter. Just focus on the mission." Not ten seconds later, the strange red's and blues of FTL travel died away to show real space. Corneria loomed and she could already see the two fighter haulers ahead of her. She charged her anti-ship cannon and locked onto the more militarized ship and fired, watching it burst apart from the massive red bolt. Eight XO-2 Arwings vectored in on her as she doubled up her forward shielding. A high pitched whine filled her ears as the twelve anti fighter missiles her craft carried locked onto six of the fighters, two missiles per target. As soon as the enemy fighters started firing, she fired the swarm and pitched away, rebalancing her shielding. Three of the blips disappeared as she felt one of them talking.

_"Kursed is here! She's already blown the Valiance apart, three of my pilots are already down!" _she grinned at his frantic voice and dropped onto one of the remaining fighters. A few well placed blasts and he was ejecting. A pair of fighters dropped onto her tail as she ducked and weaved through the Valiance's debris. She waited until they were almost right on top of her craft before ramming the G-diffusers to full, stopping her craft. They split off, narrowly dodging her. One split apart as it collided with debris and she took off after the other. It didn't last long either under her fire. The last two were trying to bait her into going after the other, so one could chase her. She fired the anti-ship cannon at one and it vaporized. The last fighter chased after her as a scream flooded over the radio.

"I am going to kill you, Bitch!" it was the same pilot who had called for help. She grinned as his weak laser blasts splashed harmlessly against her shielding. After letting him chase her for a while, she suddenly pitched up slightly, killed her thrust, and pitched downward. His fighter came into view as her own kept drifting. He juked out of her line of fire just before the lasers could connect. A grin spread across her face as she chased after him. Whoever he was, he was very skilled, easily dodging almost all of her fire. But after a few seconds, his much weaker fighter spun out of control, dropping into the planet's atmosphere. She plunged in after him, quickly arriving at a city that she used to hide her location from the other pilots. Suddenly, the same strange Arwing that had beat her back above Fortuna came out from behind one of the skyscrapers, hovering as it fired sheets of laser fire at her. Lasers struck all across her shielding as she dived under him. His blip easily followed her as they ducked and weaved through the buildings.

_"Miyu, careful with your shots in here! Don't want to hit the buildings!"_ a second Arwing swooped in from above her and fired a charge laser after her. She managed to shake the ball of energy, slamming it into one of the buildings.

_"Doing my best here Fox!"_ the fighter disappeared from her RADAR, obscured by the buildings. She concentrated on trying to lose the first Arwing as buildings whipped past at ever increasing speeds. Suddenly, a red XO-3 Arwing appeared around a corner, too close for either of them to react. She was jolted against the safety harness as the wing and G-Diffuser slammed into the Cloud Runner, ripping a gouge into her hull and disabling her shields. Before she could react, lasers were pounding into her fighter from behind, blowing one of her engines out and sending her fighter careening out of control. It slammed into a building and ricocheted off, spiraling down toward a large plaza. She blacked out as the craft slammed into the ground.

* * *

><p>Fox shot past the crash site, unable to stop as he gracefully looped around a building.<p>

"Miyu, are you alright?" he flew back into the plaza as her flaming Arwing did the same.

"Landing is going to be rough but I'm fine. See you down there." Fox absently nodded as he killed the thrust and pulled the collective up, slowly guiding his fighter down to the wreck of the fighter.

"Fox to all pilots, Kursed has been shot down, co-ordinates to follow." He activated his beacon as the craft gently set down on the concrete. Civilians scrambled out of the plaza as Miyu's fighter crashed down on the far side, ripping through some vendor stalls. Fox raised his carbine as a cloaked figure crawled from the wreckage, a staff extending in her hand as Fox fired. The blue bolts bounced clean off her barrier, just before a red ball of fire shot at Fox. He narrowly dodged it, but wasn't able to bring the carbine back up in time as Kursed slammed her staff into Fox's weapon. It flew from his grip as he narrowly dodged another swing at his gut. Fox's pistol ripped out of its holster and fired. For a split second, he thought he had gotten lucky and nailed her, but the blast had done nothing more than cause the black veil she wore to float to the ground. Before Fox could react, Kursed had tripped him with the staff and slammed the bulbous end into his gut. He fought for air as he blearily watched the bluish tinted white Vulpine snout above him. She snarled as she raised the staff, about to plunge it into him when Miyu's blurred form rammed into Kursed, toppling them both sideways. Fox fought into a sitting position as he watched them. Miyu's tackle had caused Kursed's hood to fall down, revealing long blue hair, almost past her shoulders. Miyu was sent blasting over Kursed, where she had tried to pin her to the ground and aim a blaster at her. Kursed was on her feet and moving for Miyu when Fox's heart leapt into his throat.

"Kr-Krystal?" she had raised the staff, half obscuring her face. But the staff, the turquoise eyes, the fur, were all unmistakable to Fox.

"What did you just call me?" her face was unmistakably confused and furious.

"Krystal, it's Fox, I, come on you know me!" she still looked bewildered, but toke one look at Miyu lying in front of her and stabbed the staff deep into Miyu's stomach. Fox screamed as he rushed to her side, Krystal taking off down one of the streets. Fox slid to a stop, placing both hands on her bleeding stomach.

"No, Fox, don't worry about me, I've had worse. Kursed, or Krystal, go! Catch her before it's too late!" Fox nodded and grabbed his pistol before taking off after Krystal.


	26. Chapter 25

Kursed slumped up against the wall, her hands clutching large chunks of her hair and pressing them up against her temples. _Why did that man, after spending so much time trying to kill her, not stop her, after hurting his friend no less?_ Other thoughts bounced through her skull as her eyes closed. _Because he knew you. Or thought he did._ Her thoughts drifted to the name he had called her, her hand instinctively grabbing the small charred emblem under her breastplate. _Krystal_. The name seemed familiar to her, and was a much better name than 'Kursed'. _ It sounds more like a name a parent would give her child_. She absently nodded as that thought crossed her mind, knowing it made sense to her. A voice made her jump, reaching for her staff.

"Krystal? Whoa, calm down, I'm not going to hurt you." She stared at him, scared, and yet somehow, she knew he wasn't lying. "Look, I'm sorry Krystal. For everything."

"Why do you keep calling me Krystal? And sorry for what, trying to kill me? I'm sorry pal but I was trying to do the same to you." He looked bewildered as he spoke.

"Krystal, it's me Fox? How do you not remember me?" she stared at him, unsure as to exactly what to say. A small voice inside her head started demanding she tell him everything she knew. She suddenly threw caution to the wind as she spoke.

"I, lost my memory. A few months ago, and I've been told I didn't have many before that. I don't know who I really am." The man's expression softened as tears exploded from his eyes. And yet, somehow, he wasn't actually sad.

"Oh, I, I'm so sorry. Krystal, we used to work together. You're a Cerinian, as far as you know, the last of your kind. Your staff comes from your home world, it works off of telepathic energies. I learned how to use it four years ago, just before we met." She listened to him as he spoke, stepping forward as he did so, hands cautiously outstretched. She shied away, causing him to suddenly stop. He did seem familiar, even with parts of his fur gone, and his hands clumsily bandaged and soaked in blood. It was something in his emerald green eyes that seemed so familiar to her, even in the near pitch black alley way. And everything he had said made sense, from the staff, to her being unique as far as she had seen.

"I, don't believe you, it's just too convenient." He sighed as he sat down across from her in the thin alleyway. She clutched her knees, trying to get as far away from him as possible.

"Look into my mind. I know you're a telepath. My memories, you'll see them." she closed her eyes and focused on his presence. She recognized how broken and disheveled he was from the night at the hotel. Images started to flood her mind. All of a blue vixen that looked exactly like herself, with shorter hair and well-kept fur. Even the strange tattoos were in the memories. She froze as a specific memory drew her attention.

_He watched as she stared at the small blue emblem, a small smile spreading across his face._

**_Wow she is beautiful. _**_He knew she had probably heard the thought a thousand times over since he had saved her, but he still couldn't help himself. The blue vixen glanced up at the refurbished Dreadnaught floating high above them before he spoke._

_"You know, you don't have to stay if you don't want to." The woman smiled gently as she looked at him._

_"Of course I want to stay! Who wouldn't want to be a part of Star Fox?!"_

Krystal's eyes shot open as thousands of pieces seemed to click together as one. This was the man she had loved, someone she had been trying to kill since she had awoken. They had known each other for years. But so much had been left unexplained, why she hadn't stayed in touch with him, his apology. She shivered at the thought that _she_ could have done something to him.

"Krystal?" she looked at him, tears still starting to sting her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I don't know you." She shot to her feet and froze as he hollered after her.

"Krystal! Please don't go! Not a day has gone by that I don't think of you, I don't want to lose you again!" she felt his tears as her own started to pour out of her eyes.

"I'm sorry."

* * *

><p>Wolf breathed a sigh of relief as the air ambulance lifted away from the plaza, Miyu safely inside. He couldn't imagine why Fox would've abandoned her like that, and she had been unconscious by the time he had arrived. Fara hollered over to him from the wrecked fighter.<p>

"Wolf, you need to come see this!" he trotted over to find a pair of medics pulling an orange feline out of the wreck. He was conscious as one of the medics spoke.

"He doesn't have long. Talk fast." Fara nodded before her attention turned to him.

"Where's Oikonny." His eyes bounced between them, resting on Jasmine and Falco as he spoke.

"Venom's moon. He's cored out ship hangers, and has been rebuilding his fleet in secret." He coughed up blood before he continued. "Kursed and I worked for him. Is she alright?" Fara glanced at Wolf, both of them seeing the concern in the dying man's eyes.

"I… we don't know. I'm sorry." He nodded as more blood was coughed up.

"I understand. Just take down Oikonny. Please." Another coughing fit was followed by his body ceasing all movement, his lifeless eyes still staring blankly at the darkening sky above. Wolf sighed as he closed the man's eyes before the medics hauled him off.

"Any idea where Fox is?" Fara shook her head as Falco spoke.

"I've been trying to get him on the radio, even tried his communicator. Nothing yet. A commotion started at the edge of the police line and Wolf stared at it confused. He recognized Fox at the source and he hollered as he marched over.

"He's with us, let him in!" the cops nodded and let him pass as Wolf yelled at him. "What the hell where you thinking Fox? You nearly killed Miyu!" Fox shook his head as he waved the rest of the group over. Dark lines in his fur marked tear trails as he waited for the others. Falco was the last to arrive, instantly speaking.

"Tell me you at least took that bitch down." Pain seemed to rip across his face as Falco spoke.

"No. because I can't kill Krystal." The entire group looked puzzled, except Falco.

"It can't be Fox! I looked for her for months, spent every liat I had, I would've found her!" Fox sighed as his eyes dropped to the pavement.

"I thought that too. If you had seen her, you'd agree. She's the only Cerinian we know about, her staff, it all fits. We knocked her hood off while we were fighting. It's her Falco." Fara suddenly seemed to verbally explode.

"So you left my best friend to die just so you could chase after an ex-girlfriend of yours who has been slaughtering our friends!" Fox seemed to suddenly remember Miyu as he responded.

"Is she alright?" Fara grunted as she responded.

"No thanks to you." Wolf placed a hand on her shoulder as he spoke.

"Calm down, I'm sure there was a good reason." Fox nodded as he spoke.

"She lost her memory. And Miyu told me to go. Said she would be fine, worry about Krystal. I can't abandon her Fara. No more than you could abandon Wolf." She glared at him and stalked off.

"Well, Fox, we need to go to venom. Oikonny is set up on one of the moons, building a fleet of ships. He has to be stopped. Fox threw his arms up as he responded to Wolf.

"Fuck that shit! I am going after her! If you want to worry about some ape across the system from us, fine, but I am going after Krystal! I can't leave her out here Wolf." Wolf nodded and held his hand out for him to shake.

"Then it was a pleasure working with you Fox. And I wish you luck." He glanced down at Wolf's hand, clearly puzzled.

"I, thank you Wolf. And likewise." The entire group said their goodbyes as Fara's Arwing lifted off the ground. Wolf in his Wolfen was quickly following, headed for the Tadpole.

* * *

><p>Miyu's eyes opened to find herself in a bright white hospital room, confused for a second. Then she remember the fight with Kursed and relaxed. Kyra was half asleep in one of the chairs as Miyu spoke.<p>

"Hey there girl." She snapped awake, grinning.

"Miyu, I, I was so worried about you, I came as soon as the meeting was over!" Miyu smiled as she fought up into a sitting position.

"I'm fine. Gut twinges a bit but, I'll be up and fighting before you know it. How'd the meeting go?" Kyra couldn't stop grinning, and was bouncing as she responded.

"Very well, they want the designs to be sent to and tested by Weapons R and D. once done, the finished version of them will be sent to Ashlyn Dynamics for mass production. They don't want to buy the prototypes though." Miyu grinned and let her head fall back against the pillow.

"That's great Kyra! Your father would be so proud of you." A sad smile crossed her face as a single tear slid down her face. The door opened, drawing both of their attentions. Fox walked in, his back to them as he hollered after a doctor. A smile crossed his face as he saw the two of them.

"Hey Kyra, Miyu, it's great to see you awake." Miyu returned the smile as she spoke to Kyra.

"Can you give us a minute, alone?" Kyra nodded and shut the door behind her as Fox dropped into her vacated seat. "Did you find her?" Fox nodded, clearly collecting his thoughts.

"Yeah. And Miyu, I'm sorry for abandoning you." She waved it off as she spoke.

"Yeah, who cares? I'm fine. Was it her?" he nodded as tears slid down his cheeks.

"Yes, it was, but she has no memory of me, of the Star Fox team. She might as well be a different person." Miyu gave him a confused expression before he spoke. "Her memory was wiped." Miyu nodded and smiled before she spoke.

"So, why aren't you going after her? She'll regain her memory, you just need to help her." Fox shrugged, unable to look her in the eye. "Fox, don't worry about me. I had a feeling our relationship wasn't going to last long any way. Just find her" he nodded as he stood already moving for the door.

"Thank you Miyu. And I'm sorry." She smiled as he opened the door, Kyra stepping back in.

"Hey Fox, I wasn't able to give the CDF the prototype weapons. Got enough to equip a whole cruiser, if you are interested." Fox smiled and nodded to her.

"Yeah, I'll take em. Just send them over to the supply bunker." And with that he stepped out of the room, disappearing out into the hallway.


	27. Chapter 26

Krystal sighed after her quick glance around the bar. Locals were surging in after their shifts ended, talking about meaningless squabbles and deals as they drank themselves under the tables. She waved off the female waiter that came by her table, not interested in drinking. Her eyes kept roaming every person that entered until a voice drew her attention.

"…McCloud. Been awhile since you graced this bar. Things work out with that gal that dragged you out of here?" she heard someone laugh slightly.

"With her? Things were fine. Just screwed something else up." She stood moving closer to the bar itself as the bartender responded.

"Well, out with it already." The man sighed before he spoke.

"I found someone who I thought was dead. And I lost her again. I've been searching for her since last night, and I can't find anything. No matter where I look, or how, it's like she just disappeared off the face of the galaxy." She finally found the two of them, recognizing the man from the night before.

"Well, tell me what she looks like and I'll keep an ear to the ground." Fox showed him a picture. The man reeled back slightly, unable to stop his comment.

"Damn she is fine. No wonder you're looking so hard for her." Fox smacked the bartender on the side of the head, both of them laughing slightly.

"That isn't why I'm looking for her. Look just pour me a drink will ya?" the bartender nodded as Krystal slipped up beside the man, her hood up on the sweatshirt she had stolen.

"Someone said I might find you here." Fox was raising the glass to his mouth when she spoke. Her voice caused the glass to slip out of his hand and clunk onto the counter.

"Krystal?" she smiled, dropping the hood as she leaned on the bar.

"I think so. Look, I'm sorry I ran last night. I didn't know what to think. I mean, look at it from my perspective, this random guy who has been trying to kill me is suddenly hollering that he knows me, and saying things that make perfect sense?" Fox just smiled and wrapped his arms around her. She was startled for a second, but it strangely felt right. She hugged him back, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I thought I'd never find you again Krystal." She laughed as she forced him back enough to talk to him.

"Well, you didn't, I found you. You look exhausted." He didn't seem to be able to stop grinning as he responded.

"I haven't slept. Been looking for you." She sighed as she faced the counter, resting her elbows on it.

"Look, I came looking for answers, and you seem to be the only one who can answer my questions." Fox nodded, his smile fading slightly.

"Anything. I'll do my best." She nodded and collected her thoughts before she spoke.

"A few of my memories have come back, more than I'd like to admit since last night. including something about an explosion? And all of my memories after that, I seemed to not know much about what happened before that blast. But I really want to know what you were apologizing for." Fox's friend had already told her what she thought it was, but Krystal wanted to hear it from him.

"Almost three years ago, I kicked you off the team. And I feel like I broke your heart. You went and joined Star Wolf afterwards and nearly died fighting me. I caused that, and I'm sorry." She patted his shoulder as she spoke.

"Hey, I survived didn't I? You don't need to apologize." He grunted as he continued.

"You don't realize how angry you were." She chuckled as she responded.

"Oh no, I do. One of the few memories that have come back was right after that, when I had run off. I was furious with you. For trying to make decisions about my life. Told the scavengers my name was Kursed, although I honestly didn't know my name, and I guess that's when all of this assassin work started. Matheson told me that I had trouble sleeping at night, during the time he knew me. My only guess is, that it was from the people I've murdered, that some part of me survived my amnesia and only came out in my sleep." Fox looked at her, puzzled. "That Warlord's second in command. The one that had me capture you. He had been acting as my handler."

"So how much has come back?" she smiled at him as she responded.

"Not much. Cape Claw did. And some things from the Saurian crisis. Particularly meeting you, and what you are to me." Fox smiled as he stared at her for a few seconds.

"And what would that be?" she smiled as she kissed his cheek.

"Someone I love, and one that I would follow into the depths of hell." He smiled as he gestured for the door.

"Let's get out of here. Go someplace quiet, so we can talk." She smiled and walked with him, lacing her fingers with his.

* * *

><p>"So, that cat led them falsely? I have to give it to him, he was loyal to the end. But now that any CDF ships that happen to be on route are going to venom, why don't you reset their navigation to Sauria. I'll have a little trap ready for them." Jasmine sighed as Oikonny spoke.<p>

"Look, I'll find a way to lure them out of the system, get them to stay away for your little takeover bid." The ape laughed at her and her heart leapt into her throat, hoping the walls were soundproof.

"You've grown to care for that little group of misfits. Remember, Peregrine, they are the enemy. Now do as I command." She sighed and was about to speak when the door shot open. Katt marched in before she had the chance to black out the screen.

"You traitorous bitch." A blaster leveled on Jasmines chest as she stood, hitting a keys on her computer to terminate the call and seal the door behind her. Katt glanced back for a second, giving Peregrine a chance to grab the blaster off her own belt.

"It's not what it looks like Katt!" she glared at Jasmine, her finger tightening slightly on the weapon.

"Oh yeah, cause I know what Oikonny looks and sounds like, I've met him. How else did Kursed know when to hit us!?" Jasmines eyes closed for the barest trace of a second as she whispered, almost to herself.

"I'm sorry Katt, I didn't want to hurt any of you." Her weapon fired, the laser blasting into Katt's stomach. Katt screamed for a second before Jas could gag her. Ropes came out of one her drawers and she quickly bound the feline by her hands and feet. Jasmines fingers flew over her keyboard, hacking into the Nav system and setting the course for Sauria. As soon as the ship had adjusted course, she overloaded the system. The ship shook as consoles on the bridge shorted out. Her stuff flew into bags before she rushed out of the room. She was almost to the tail boom when Fara's voice stopped her.

"Hey do you know… What's with the bag?" Jasmines blaster shot up and she pounded a pair of rounds toward Fara. The Vulpine narrowly dodged the blasts as she took off down the boom, sliding into her ship and dropping away. The ship shook violently as it dropped out of warp. She tapped a few keys, calling Oikonny back. His image appeared and she was instantly speaking.

"There, it's done. But just so you know, so are we. You need a hacker, look for someone else!" before the ape could respond, she ended the call, tears already streaming out of her eyes.

* * *

><p>Fox yawned and stretched, still sitting on the edge of his bed. Last night's events still seemed surreal to him as he ran them through his head over and over again. There was a knock on the door and he hollered through it.<p>

"Come in!" the door opened and he couldn't help but smile as Krystal walked in. she was still in an old night gown of hers as she plopped on the end of his bed, right beside him.

"I still want to know why you insisted we sleep in different rooms." He smiled as he spoke, gently punching her shoulder.

"Just want to make sure you really want to do this. And waiting for more of your memory to come back." she nodded as silence fell between them. "Krystal, how did you know that we were going to be here?" she smiled as she responded.

"Oh, Oikonny knew this hacker and he put Matheson in touch with her. Called herself Peregrine. Anyway, she told us." Fox froze, almost unable to speak.

"Did you just say Peregrine?" Krystal looked bewildered as she responded.

"I, yeah I did. Is something wrong Fox?" He shot up and was almost instantly pacing back and forth.

"She was able to tell you because she is on the Tadpole! Which means Oikonny knows that Wolf is on his way to venom!" Krystal raised an eyebrow at him, her ear mimicking her eyebrow.

"Venom? Why would he care if Wolf goes to venom?" Fox froze again, mimicking her confusion.

"Oikonny is on one of Venom's moons?" Krystal shook her head, staring at him.

"No, Oikonny's main base is on Sauria's moon, not Venom. We swung by on our way to Corneria" Fox cursed and tugged a shirt and jacket on.

"Come on, get dressed, I gotta call Peppy." She grabbed his arm as he tugged his boots on.

"Fox, what's going on?" he shoved her hand off and finished lacing his boots.

"Oikonny could do anything he wants to the Tadpole with Peregrine on board! Which means we need to go after Oikonny _before _he makes his move. You may not remember them, but you have friends on that ship!" Krystal gasped, one hand over her mouth as Fox dug his blaster out of the drawer.

"But what can we do? I don't have a fighter and we don't have a jump ship?" he smirked as he glanced up at her.

"Says who? Come on, get dressed."


	28. Chapter 27

Falco rushed into Jas' room, his mouth dropping when he saw Katt, bleeding on the floor. Fay and Fara were already in the room, Fara clutching a laser graze on her arm.

"Wh-what the hell happened?!" he dropped to his knees in front of Katt, who stirred slightly at the sound of his voice.

"Jasmine shot her, put a pair of rounds toward me on her way out, but well, I've always been light on my feet." Falco cursed before he continued.

"But why? Why would she just start shooting?" the trio fell silent as Katt's weak voice spoke.

"Oikonny… She was… talking to… Oikonny." Fay and Fara glanced at each other, a scared look in their eyes.

"So then, what did she do to the ship?" Falco glanced between them, totally confused. Wolf marched in as Fara gestured to Fay.

"Wolf, can you watch over Katt? Falco, Fay, come on." he followed the two women out into the hall as Slippy trotted off the bridge.

"Fay, what do you think?" she sighed as the group formed a small circle.

"Not good. The Tadpole doesn't have the medical facilities I'd need to do much more than buy her time. And she honestly doesn't have much. Hours at most." Falco felt tears rising in his eyes.

"And most of the bridge consoles are shot. Blown in the power surge. Best we can hope for is the emergency stop is still functional. Then all we have to do is run into a celestial body, planet, asteroid, moon, anything." Falco sighed before he responded.

"Well, we can't be far from Katina. Katt's ship has a warp drive. We can get her an actual hospital." The others stared at him, clearly in disagreement.

"Falco, Katt's ship could be the only thing capable of getting us help once we stop. We can't just let it run off when we have the possibility of landing in uncharted territory. We can't risk everyone else just to save her. I know Fay will do her best, and she may just make it." Fay's eyes dropped as Fara spoke. She couldn't look at any of them as she spoke softly.

"No she won't. She needs at least some plasma, maybe even blood. None of us can give that to her. Without it, she will die. The best I can do is make her more comfortable." Tears flowed freely out of everyone's eyes. Falco cursed and stalked away, his hands running through the feathers on his head.

"Falco, I'm sorry. We can't do anything for her." he ignored her and disappeared into jasmine's cabin, sitting down next to Katt. Wolf nodded to him and stepped out, leaving the door open. Hours seemed to pass as he watched her sleep, almost too still for her to be alive. He cursed before he peeked out the door. Voices were drifting from the bridge, but the hallway seemed clear. He quickly grabbed Katt and slipped into the tail boom, carefully lowering her limp body into her fighter. One of their voices shouted his name just before he slid down the ladder.

"Falco! No!" he looked back before shouting.

"I'm sorry." And he sealed the hatch behind him. The fighter powered on without issue and he kept the ship on the same course as he decelerated. As soon as he had dropped out of warp, he checked his navigation. "What the hell…" by the nav computer, his current position was only an hour from Katina, when it should have been almost six. Confused, he re-checked the star charts and nearby nav buoy's tracing a line on his current heading straight to Sauria. "Well guys, I'll be back with you soon. Just don't kill me for this."

* * *

><p>Krystal clumsily climbed out of the cab, unused to riding in civilian vehicles in full combat gear. She had strapped her 'Kursed' armor on, down to the sniper rifle slung over her shoulder. The cab driver had been afraid of them until Fox showed him his ID, explaining that he was a member of the Star Fox team. They had come to a group of private landing pads just outside the main spaceport. The private guards seemed to not even notice them as Fox punched in a code to enter. The gate opened and she followed him through it.<p>

"So, um, what are we doing here?" he smirked as he responded.

"I doubt you remember this place. Peppy bought this after the Aparoid threat. It's where my fighter is." She nodded as he led the way to one of the pads, entering the code again at a second gate. Inside were two large aircraft hangers with a landing pad equal in size sprawling out in front of the two buildings. On the tarmac, was Fox's modified Arwing, seeming almost strange alone on the expanse of concrete. He led her to one of the hangers and gestured her inside. She did as he gestured, walking into the nearly pitch black room. He followed her in and flicked the lights on as he spoke.

"See? You have a fighter." Her jaw dropped as she saw the ship, in perfect condition. She had only seen fighters in this condition in advertisements.

"I Fox, if that's an X-03, then why are you flying that old Junker?" he smirked and gestured toward the fighter.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out." She stayed puzzled as she walked around the craft, not seeing anything out of place. "Why don't you get in it?" she nodded and climbed the ladder that was already pushed up to it. She was about to ask Fox to unseal the Canopy for her when she saw the name under cockpit. _Krystal_.

"This was mine, wasn't it?" she glanced back at him as he nodded and typed a command into his wrist computer.

"Yeah. When you left, I couldn't bear to sell it. So I maintained it, kept it in the best condition possible. When you destroyed my fighter, I couldn't stand the thought of flying it, so I flew the old junker, as you dubbed it." she grimaced as she fired the fighter up, having no trouble at all with the holographic interface.

"I understand. And I guess it ended up being smart." She sealed the canopy as he opened the main door. She carefully guided the craft out of the hanger and into the sky, patiently waiting for him to follow. His own fighter quickly joined her, looking cheap and shabby compared to her fighter. He led her out into space as she spoke over the radio.

"So that solves the fighter problem, but what about a jump ship?" he chuckled as he responded, vectoring toward the moon.

"Oh, don't worry. I got that covered. I don't know if you remember Rob, but be ready to say hi to him again." Confused, she let silence fall between them, simply following his fighter. They came around to the backside of the moon, where a space junk yard and recycling center was. Most of the ships there were rusted and battered hulks, looking like just passing by would cause them to fall apart. But near the center itself, was a ship that looked totally out of place, given it was in flying condition and was clearly powered.

"Is that a light assault carrier? I thought the CDF stopped using those decades ago?" Fox angled his fighter toward one of the hanger openings, located at the bow of the boxy ship.

"As a matter of fact, she is. I'd like you to meet the Great Fox Two. She aint as flashy as the old girl, but she'll get the job done. When you died, I stopped trying to refurbish it, and just hired Rob out to the junk yard. Kinda fitting, since I bought her from here for next to nothing. Rob has been taking care of her." She grinned as she guided her fighter into one of the hangers, docking with one of the catapult clamps. She couldn't help but smile as the canopy lifted and she somehow felt at home on a ship she had never set foot on before. Fox trotted over to her fighter and helped her out before walking with her to the back of the hanger.

"So, is she armed as she used to be? I mean, back in the day, these things had weapons comparable to a modern cruiser." He shook his head as they stepped into an elevator.

"No, all that's working is the missile system. Still formidable, but not great. Her armor and shields are way above spec now, as well as her engines. But, for a ship that I bought cheaper than dirt, she's great. A modern ship this size would've been almost five times the cost." They arrived at the bridge and she followed him on, recognizing the robot on the bridge.

"Krystal, I am glad you are alive and well." His mechanical voice was unfamiliar to her, but she simply could not remember how it sounded before.

"I'm alive Rob, not well." His head cocked sideways, about to speak when Fox cut him off.

"Stow it Rob and get us moving for the Orbital Gate. Peppy is assembling three battle groups there to deal with Oikonny." The view outside the ship started moving as Rob spoke.

"Affirmative. Estimated time of arrival, three minutes." Krystal smiled to Fox as they left the junk yard, seeing the worry in every line of his body.


	29. Chapter 28

Fara sighed as she sat on the burned bridge. Slippy had accidently crossed the wrong wires trying to jury rig the bridge consoles into working order. They had spent the past half hour trying to fight the ensuing fire.

"Damn it, why did Falco just abandon us like that!?" she startled at the sound of Slippy's voice.

"I… I don't know. Really cares about Katt I guess. I just hope he made it, honestly." Slippy nodded in agreement just before the ship suddenly lurched into real space. Smiling they both sprung up and ran to the forward viewport, expecting to see the lifeless brown color of Venom before them. Instead, was a lush, mostly green world with very little ocean. "Um, that's not Venom." Slippy glanced at her, fear in his eyes.

"I know, that's Sauria. And with Krystal being AWOL, there is no way of getting a signal off. There are no subspace buoys or any major technology out here!" Fara felt fear rise into her own heart as the others rushed onto the bridge, one by one. Slippy had moved to one of the only working consoles on the bridge, his voice raising several octaves as he spoke.

"We have in bound craft! Looks like three Zerham class Cruisers and a massive number of frigates, at least four dozen! And a boat load of fighters. Two Grazgen Carriers backing the fleet up." Wolf cursed before he spoke, and for one of the first times Fara had ever seen, looked scared.

"Alright, everyone, too your fighters. Protect the Tadpole at all costs. Amanda, see if you can get the point defense systems working." The group nodded almost as one as they rushed out of the bridge and toward the tail boom.

* * *

><p>Falco cursed as the Cat's Paw dropped out of warp above Katina. He had been checking on Katt at every chance possible, and the last one just minutes prior, he almost couldn't find her pulse.<p>

"This is Katina control to unidentified aircraft, please respond or you will be fired upon." Falco scrambled to fire up the com system.

"This Falco Lombardi, I have an injured person aboard requiring immediate medical attention. No time for landing at the space port. I don't give a damn what you have to do, just get me to the closest hospital!" there was a pause as Falco waited, keeping the engines at full.

"Adjust heading for the Neema space port. We will have emergency personal on standby." Falco cursed before he turned the radio back on.

"Negative control, tell me the coordinates for the closest hospital! She doesn't have time for me to land at a spaceport! Arrest me, blow me to bits, I don't care, just let me land at a damned hospital before you do so!" there was another pause over the radio as the planet inched closer.

"Affirmative. You are to disable all shielding and weapons. Two fighter craft will escort you to the main hospital in Neema. The pilots will contact you shortly. Shielding will be permitted during atmospheric entry. Control out." Falco rammed the throttle forward and felt the ship shake violently as flame ripped past the canopy. His radio buzzed on as the fighter finally stopped shaking.

"This is Captain Ferguson of the Katinain air defense force. Stay on your present course and speed, and maintain an altitude of five thousand meters. We will be with you shortly. If your shields or weapons are active on our scanners, we will open fire." Falco keyed the radio back up as he responded.

"Roger that Captain. Holding course, altitude and speed. Magnetic shielding and weapons disabled." Falco glanced back into the ship, watching Katt for a few seconds. He sighed and stared out of the canopy. Two AL-4 Bottlenose fighters joined up with him and flanked his fighter, far enough back that they could follow any maneuver that he attempted. The city sprawled before him and he slowed down to sub sonic speeds. The hospital was a short squat structure that had been marked in his navigation systems. He eased the fighter onto the landing pad and carried Katt outside. A group of doctors were just outside, a gurney ready and waiting.

"What happened to her?!" Falco set her on the gurney as he responded.

"Military grade blaster, point blank to the gut." The doctor nodded and moved to rush her off into the facility when Falco stopped him. "Is she gonna be alright?"

"I don't know. Stomach wounds can be tricky under the best conditions. But I'll do everything I can sir." Falco nodded and was already headed back to the Cat's paw as he spoke.

"Okay, I have to get going. Friends may be in trouble, this was our only capable jump ship." Before the doctor could respond, he was already inside the ship. His radio sprung to life as the fighter lifted off the ground.

"Where the hell are you going?" he sighed as he responded.

"I'm sorry, I'd love to stay and chat but I kinda abandoned my team to get her here. Sorry." He aimed the fighter space ward and gunned the engines.

* * *

><p>Fay lanced after the one of the Invader fighters arcing in on the Tadpole. It exploded under her lasers and her mind drifted back to Bill. She had heard he was shot down, but had heard nothing of his condition, much less whether he was alive or not. The thought that he was dead strangely scared her.<p>

_Whoa, Fay, focus. You're being swarmed under, now is not the time to be worrying about Bill._ The voice inside her own head brought her back to reality, just as a new blip appeared on her RADAR.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm… what the fuck?! Why did you have to go kick the hornets' nest without me? I'm insulted!" Fara responded as Fay dove after a pair of strike bombers.

"Oh just shut up and get in this tango!" one of the bombers splintered apart as Fay charged her laser and fired, the green glob engulfing the other fighter.

"Um, the Cat's paw is a little low on fuel to be dogfighting. Gotta park and switch." Fay spoke before anyone else could.

"Falco! Is Katt…?" Fara cut her off.

"And how did you know to come here?" A pair of Garanga fighters looped onto Fay's tail and she struggled to shake them.

"Katt was alive when we reached Katina Fay. And I plotted our heading after I dropped out of Warp." She glanced at her RADAR as he docked with the Tadpole. The two fighters behind her detonated as a Wolfen shot by behind her, marked as Leon.

"Thanks Leon!" her voice squeaked out and she was about to go after a new group as he responded.

"Don't thank me yet! Cover me!" she shot after him, far enough back that she could easily slip onto any pursuer's tail. They dived in on one of the Frigates and Leon started pounding on it. Fighters were already swarming in on them as Fara did her best to fight them off. Her shields dropped out as almost endless amounts of laser fire pounded into them. She ducked and weaved through the best she could, only targeting fighters going after Leon. The frigate detonated, a chunk of the ship biting into the nose of her fighter.

"This is Fay, I'm hit! Charge Laser and missile banks disabled, port laser cannon blocked!" Leon's fighter shot past her, killing the fighters behind her as she heard Fara yell out.

"Oh shit, I'm hit, severe damage to the ion engine! Two frigates on an unimpeded approach of the Tadpole!" Fay arced around, firing a single linked blast to blow a hole through the chunk of metal. Falco's fighter was no longer connected to the Tadpole, going after any fighter unfortunate enough to come near it. A small silver sphere shot away from the Tadpole just before the ship burst into pieces.

"Damn it, sorry guys, Escape pod can't fight!" Fay cursed as she gunned her fighter after a bomber that was aiming for the pod.

"Don't worry Amanda, we'll cover…" Wolfs voice was cut off as Fara yelled again.

"Damn it, engine failure. I'm going to try to crash land this bitch but, no guarantees! Fara out!" Fay glanced at her RADAR, Fara's fighter barely clearing the fleet. A half squad of fighters raced after, Fay gunning after them. Laser blasts tore into each of the ships, destroying each in turn. Her cannons suddenly dropped out, forcing her to ram her fighter into the last ship.

"Falco here, I got a gate comin up, three clicks off that fleet's stern!" she fought to bring her fighter under control as she focused on the massive green disk that had appeared in space.


	30. Chapter 29

Krystal watched as Rob slipped the vessel up with the rest of Peppy's small fleet. The fleet consisted of eighteen cruisers, with four smaller frigates escorting each cruiser. The radio crackled to life with a strangely familiar voice.

"Hey Fox, damn, you still have that junker you bought? Please tell me it is at least armed now?" Fox chuckled beside her, clicking the button to respond.

"Peppy, seriously, you're the one that recommended it. And yeah, all the missile batteries are operative, and its hull, shielding, and engines have all been reinforced and upgraded. Hey, why don't you say hi?" his attention changed to her and she smiled.

"Um, hello peppy. Long time no see, I think." The radio was silent for a few seconds as Fox grinned from ear to ear.

"Krystal?! I, but I thought you were dead!" Fox and Krystal both laughed together. Fox managed to stop laughing first.

"Well, I guess she isn't the only Star Fox member that's hard to kill. We ready to go?" the ship stopped with the fleet as Peppy responded.

"Roger that. Courageous, Valkyrie, move to the Great Fox with your escort and provide cover. Gate control, I need a gate to Sauria. Make it happen." Krystal watched as the massive green disk was formed in space. It seemed dull for a few seconds, then seemed to shine as a perfect ripple effect came from the center of the disk.

"Krystal, come on, we need to mount up." She nodded and followed him off the bridge. They both clambered into their fighters and started powering them on. Fox's voice suddenly filled her cockpit.

"Krystal, link our minds together. Like you're trying to read mine. The connection can work both ways if the non-telepath is aware of it." she absently nodded as she did so. A second Arwing cockpit seemed to appear in her subconscious, various almost incoherent thoughts echoing with it. She was surprised when the connection didn't seem to take any concentration at all to up keep.

_Wow, this is different._ Fox's voice echoed in her own mind as he responded.

_I know, it should be. We used to do this all the time._ The hanger door opened before them, revealing the lush green world of Sauria before them. Numerous specks winked and flashed above the planet, marking a small but remarkably brutal conflict before them.

* * *

><p>Fox rammed his throttle forward as the catapult slung his fighter out of the ship. He could almost feel Krystal's fighter just a meter off his wing. His radio was swarmed under with calls from Wolf and the rest of the group.<p>

"Wolf, status, now!" Wolf's voice responded, as calm as ever as the Cornerian fleet gunned through the enemy ships, weapons blazing. The enemy fleet was cast into disarray from the brutal flanking maneuver.

"Fara is down, Fay is disabled, Tadpole destroyed, and Amanda in a pod. Minor damage to the rest of us, and out of munitions!" Fox dived after a group of fighters, Krystal and himself shredding them in seconds.

"Roger that, Rob, use the drones to recover downed pilots. Wolf, go groundside and find Fara, Slippy, Falco, form up!" Fay was suddenly speaking.

"Damn it! My fighters dropping into the atmosphere. I'll try to keep it stable but no guarantees!" Fox glanced at his RADAR as Fay's fighter disappeared into the atmosphere. Two whole squadrons of fighters were changing course to intercept Wolf and Fox gunned after them. A pair of Nova bombs shot away from his fighter as he jiggled the rudder pedals. The majority of the ships disappeared in giant blue balls of fire. The remaining craft shredded under Krystal's fire. Falco and Slippy slipped up behind them, flying as one unit, almost as if the four of them were one craft.

"Fox, I'm seeing Wolfens on the scanners. Twelve of them. By course and speed I'd say they are moving to intercept us." Fox absently nodded as he changed course.

"Alright, let's give them a party. Break into wing pairs and engage. Stick together, cover each other." Falco and Slippy acknowledged as the two groups raced closer. These Wolfens were painted straight black, unlike those Star Wolf used. They also had the topside G-diffuser removed for some reason. Fox locked his missiles on the first three fighters and fired. Missiles ripped away from both his and Falco's fighter, followed by Charge laser shots from Krystal and Slippy. Only four of the craft were disabled, one by each of them. The others managed to dodge Fox and Falco's missile volley, the wedge breaking apart as Fox dived after one of the craft. It juked and dodged Fox's fire, only to end up in Krystal's. Two more of the Wolfens dropped onto their tails as the fighter before them splintered apart. Fox killed his thrust, pulled up, and rammed his collective up. Both enemy fighters shot past him as he killed the collective and followed them. Krystal was easily dodging their shots as she played bait. One of the Wolfens veered off and Fox ignored it, concentrating his fire on the one still after Krystal. It detonated as its wing mate looped onto Fox's tail. He gunned his engines as Krystal activated her G-Diffusers, waiting for them to shoot past. As soon as she stopped, she was neatly tucked behind the Wolfen, and let loose a charge laser, vaporizing the craft before the pilot could respond. Another Wolfen lined up for a head to head with Fox and Fox fired his linked cannons. Return shots slid off his shielding as he pressed more power into his shielding. Krystal's laser's joined his and the craft lazily drifted past them, having lost all power.

"Falco here, looks like were in the Clear." Fox smirked as he angled his fighter planet side.

"Alright, I'll go see how Wolf is doing, Falco, take Slippy and nail any threat to the fleet ships. Come on Krystal." Their fighters shot away from each other, the planet beganing to take over his entire view.

* * *

><p>Wolf sprinted to through the trees, his pistol loosely balanced in his hand. He heard blaster shots ahead of him and pushed himself harder, trying to move as fast as he could through the thick trees. Fara's crash site loomed before him, a squad of troops spread out before him and firing on the already torn apart fighter. His blaster fired almost as if it had a mind of its own. Three of the soldiers dropped before any of them responded to Wolf's sudden appearance. He reached one of the soldiers and literally punched him with the barrel of the pistol hard enough that he was knocked out cold. Two more fell to his blaster fire before he sprinted past and leapt clean over Fara's fighter, landing in a crouch just feet from her.<p>

"Hey Fara, sorry about that." She glared at him, her hands clasped around her blaster.

"Great, now we are both stuck down here. Why did you go and get shot down again?" Wolf chuckled as he peeked over the ruined hull and fired a pair of blasts. Both connected to their target and he dropped back down.

"Thought it might be fun. You know, try something new." She rolled her eyes before she suddenly grimaced, clutching her bleeding leg. "Can you move?" she shook her head as more waves of pain visibly swept across her body. Now that he actually looked at her, he realized her leg was bent slightly at a place where it shouldn't be able to.

"I think my leg's broken." Wolf nodded and fired another burst over the hull, not really aiming it. He was about to pop up to fire again as the screech of a fighter filled the air. Massive green laser blasts rained down on the enemy position as a blue third gen Arwing stopped above them, just floating there. His weapon whipped up at the sound of pounding footsteps as Fox came from their side of the wreck. He slid to a stop, his carbine balanced loosely in his hands.

"Hey Wolf, Fara. Having fun?" Wolf glared at him as the Arwing shot away.

"Not really. You get shot down too?" Fox gave him an extremely offended look.

"No! How could you say such blasphemy!" he waited a few seconds to continue. "For your information, you left your radio on. We know Fara can't move, so I thought I'd cover your ass while you move her. Now go! The hollow isn't far, and some of Tricky's warriors should be able to protect you there." Fara seemed the only one still confused as Wolf slung one of her arms over his shoulder and helped her stand on her good leg.

"Wait, if you're down here, who was that in the Arwing? It can't have been Miyu?" he chuckled as he shoved them toward the trees.

"Krystal. Who else would I let fly that Arwing? Ah shit, go!" more venom troops swarmed into the clearing as he shoved them into the trees. Wolf glanced back, seeing him fire a devastating volley at them before they could respond. He smirked before they shuffled off into the woods.


	31. Chapter 30

Slippy rolled and juked, narrowly dodging the large volumes of cannon fire the two fleets were slinging at each other. Suddenly, a ship seemed to just appear that seemed vaguely familiar to Slippy. It suddenly hit him as a familiar voice assaulted the friendly radio systems.

"Think you've won eh? Well, time for you to meet my new flagship! All batteries, commence firing!" massive sheets of fire ripped away from the ship as Oikonny's voice faded. The craft angled its nose at a Cornerian Cruiser, and Slippy watched in horror as a massive beam of light ripped clean through the cruiser.

"Hey, Rob, get me some fire support, Lucy, Leon, form up, we're hitting that thing before it can do anymore damage to the fleet!" Slippy nodded as he shot after Falco's fighter, barely able to keep up. Lucy's slate grey Arwing eased up beside him as Leon followed Falco at the rear, completing the diamond. Slippy could see the light assault carrier beyond the enemy dreadnaught, and was shocked as massive volley after volley of missiles arced away from the hull, almost obscuring three very large missiles. The weapons detonated all over the Dreadnaught's shielding as the first large missile struck, blasting the shielding away like it was just paper. The rest of the missiles tore chunks out of the hull, the other two larger missiles being targeted and destroyed. The ship turned on the spot, showing its engines to them as it fired back, its main weapon glancing off shielding as the Great Fox dived out of the way. "Slippy, hit their engines, Lucy, disable that cannon! Leon, you and I will target their defense systems until Slippy gets us a weak point!"

"Roger that Falco!" he ignored the others as he lined up on the first of the four engines. His two massive anti-ship cannons fired, blasting the engine apart. He juked and rolled onto line with another engine before he realized that there was no return fire. He grinned as he brought his fighter to a stop and quickly destroyed the last of the engines. His fingers flew across the screen as he scanned the enemy vessel. The reactor was at the back of the ship, right beneath where the engine crossbar's met. He grinned yet again as he fired his cannons into the back of the ship. The third shot saw results as Oikonny's voice came back over the radio.

"Damn you Star Fox!" a single Wolfen shot away from the ship and jumped to warp as systems all over the ship over loaded.

"Good shot Slippy! Now let's clear out before this gets any worse!" Lucy's fighter shot away as she spoke, Slippy ripping after her. The massive ship detonated behind them as the last few ships jumped out, to the disembodied cheers of the Cornerian fleet. Slippy couldn't help but join in as he vectored toward the new Great Fox.

* * *

><p>Fay glanced up from Fara's leg as Cornerian Dropships started landing amongst the grassy knolls that the locals called Thorntail hollow. She smiled as her attention dropped back to Fara's leg as she finished the bandage.<p>

"There, that's the best I can do." Fara nodded in thanks as Wolf sat down beside her, one arm over her shoulder.

"Thanks Fay. How'd you get here anyway?" Fay sat down with them as a Blue X-03 Arwing landed in the distance.

"She told me where to run as she covered me. Krystal, I think." Wolf grunted as a blue Vixen climbed out of the craft.

"Hmph. So that's her. Little bit more alive than I thought she'd be." Fara's bitter tone shocked both of them as Fay raised an eyebrow at Fara.

"She did just help save our lives." Fara glared back at her.

"And she nearly killed Miyu, and killed a lot of people, including your father." Fay's eyes dropped as an unfamiliar voice joined them.

"Yes, I did. And I know it won't bring them back, but I hate myself for every single person I have killed. And I'm sorry. Fay, isn't it?" She nodded, able to see the pain in Krystal's eyes.

"You lost your memories, right?" Krystal nodded, a single tear sliding out of one of her turquoise eyes.

"Yes, almost all of them after I nearly died, including my own name. I had faint memories of panther, and nothing more." Fay nodded, crossing her arms and glaring at Krystal.

"Then Krystal didn't kill my father. Kursed did. The question is, which are you?" she shuffled her feet, kicking at the grass.

"I really don't know." Fay sighed and closed her eyes, not even sure what to say herself.

"You may have pulled the trigger, but good people do bad things when controlled by bad people. I guess the question is, are you a good person? But you can't answer that. Only time can." Krystal went silent as she stared at her feet, clearly confused. "Anyway, this is Fara, and Wolf." Krystal looked up just before shaking Fara's hand. Wolf didn't accept her hand as his own eyes stared at the dirt.

"Krystal, I'm sorry. I left you in that asteroid field and I shouldn't have. I left you to die. I should've…." She stooped over and put a single finger on his lips.

"Stop. Fox told me what we had been after. My life was not worth the thousands that man intended to take." Wolf nodded, his eyes dropping to the dirt as he was clearly lost in thought. Fay was about to speak when another, far more familiar voice joined them.

"Well, I see you all didn't kill each other while I was out. Fay sprung around, wrapping her arms around Fox.

"Fox!" She felt Fox tentatively hug back as she spoke. "Do you, um, know if Bill is alright? I never got to find out before we left." Fox held her back from him, one eyebrow raised at her.

"Um, yeah, has a few minor cuts and bruises from a rough landing but, other than that, he's fine." She breathed a sigh of relief before dropping back onto the grass. "Well, to the rest of you, I have Rob using drones to gather the remains of your fighters, and Peppy promised a shuttle to take you three up to the Great Fox. Rob will take you wherever you want, or in Fara's case, need to go." Wolf stood up before helping Fara back to her feet.

"Thanks Fox. What about you?" he smirked his hands resting on his hips.

"Well, I thought me and Krystal should spend a few days here, and I haven't seen Tricky in forever, so." He shrugged as Fay scrambled to her feet to follow Wolf.

"Oh and pup? Stay in touch." Fox smiled back at Wolf and waved goodbye to all of them.

"Count on it."


	32. Epilogue

**+6 hours**

Fox sighed as he stared up at the stars above them, simply content with life for the first time in over two years.

"Do you know the one thing that gets me every time?" Fox sat back up as he stared at Krystal, propped up just a few feet away. They had both ditched their gear, leaving her in a skin tight t-shirt and baggy combat cargos.

"No I don't." he smiled back to her as she glanced back up at the stars.

"How… Reluctant? You are with me. I know from the memories I do have that you have always been very respectful to me, but it still awes me. Honestly, I want to be back to what we were, and yet, you stay back, even though I know you want to too. Why?" Fox chuckled as he responded.

"Well, if you know what I want, then you should know why I hold back." the sound of her gentle laugh seemed to make his heart soar.

"I just want to actually hear you say it." Fox smiled as he slumped back into the sand, staring up at the stars above.

"Honestly, I respect you more than I respect myself." She cut him off before he could continue.

"Clearly. You did drown yourself in a bar for nearly a year." They both laughed and Fox continued as soon as soon as he got the laughter under control.

"And I still hate myself for casting you off the Star Fox team. I made a massive mistake, and I didn't respect you the way I should've. Honestly, I think you'd be better off without me." He heard her sigh before she shifted across the sand. Her head came to a rest on his chest as she finally responded.

"And I know why you did. You were scared. People don't act the way they want to when they are. And honestly, all that matters to me is that I love you. The rest, just is miniscule in comparison." Fox smiled and nodded, a single tear sliding down his cheek as he wrapped an arm around her curled body.

"I missed you so much Krystal."

()

**+16 hours**

Slippy dropped his bag onto the couch as he dropped into a seat, home for the first time in almost two months.

"I think that was enough of an adventure for me. And you used to do stuff like that for a living? Who knew you had the strength?" He smiled and glared at her as she spoke.

"Thanks Amanda, just make me feel bad" she grinned at the sound of his voice as she dropped into one of the other chairs.

"Oh you love me. But, I say, we are definitely ready to settle down." Slippy put on an expression of mock horror as he responded.

"Aw, but I don't want to settle down! Can I at least rebuild the Tadpole? And keep the Bull Frog?" Amanda chuckled as she responded.

"Oh, alright, but we build it together this time." He grinned as he settled back into the chair, almost instantly asleep.

()

**+ 3 days**

Katt slowly became aware of a faint rhythmic beat. She frowned slightly, trying to place what the sound was when she realized someone had been holding her hand, retreating when she had frowned. Her eyes slowly opened as a stark white hospital room appeared before her, Falco's familiar face beside her.

"Hey Katt. Good to see you're not dead." She scoffed as she stared at him, smiling.

"I nearly die, and that's all you can say?" he shrugged as his eyes shifted away from her.

"Look, I'm sorry about… about Peregrine. I should've listened when you said to not trust her." Katt continued to smile as she spoke.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll find a way to make it up to me." He smirked as he responded.

"Oh I think I can think of a few things." she chuckled as she responded.

"Like what? You got a lot to make up for bird boy." He leaned so close to her that she felt and heard her heart rate start speeding up.

"Oh, let's just say us Avian's tend to skip the whole kissing thing. Little hard to do with a beak." He stood up and winked at her before he moved to leave the room.

"You sick minded bird. When I get out of here, I'll have to take you up on that." He smirked at her one last time before disappearing through the doorway.

()

**+ 3 days**

Jasmine paced back and forth as she waited for someone to pick up. The call finally answered to show the amphibian, Slippy.

"Oh finally. Look I never wanted to stab you guys in the back. i…" he cut her off before she could continue.

"Just shut up. You nearly got all of us killed. And you shot a good friend of mine. So why don't you just stay the hell away from us?" The call terminated and she burst into tears, unable to contain them any longer.

"Damn it! Why did I listen to that blasted ape anyway?!" her computer beeped and she almost ignored it. she fought down the tears as she read the message almost confused at the offer with in. she shrugged and grabbed her jacket, wiping as much of the moisture as she could from her face before leaving the room.

()

**+ five days**

Miyu smiled as she stepped out onto the streets of Corneria, happy to finally be breathing fresh air again. A familiar shape fought through the crowd to reach her, returning the hug that the small girl gave her.

"Hey Kyra. Damn it is good to be breathing fresh air again." Kyra giggled as she responded.

"Oh, remember how I said I have something to show you?" she nodded as Kyra held up her hand, revealing the small ring that was on it.

"I… Dust proposed to you, didn't he?" She nodded, positively bouncing.

"Apparently, when dad… when dad died, he had been talking to Dust to give him his blessing. And the ring. He had known all along about us, almost from day one. Hell, he intentionally tried to talk to both of us all the time, just to pick on us." Miyu couldn't help but giggle with her. "So have you seen Fox since that night?" she nodded, images of him visiting her flashing through her mind.

"Yeah, I have. And he's very happy with Krystal. Those two were meant for each other. I'm just glad I was able to help him find her." a small pang shot through her gut, and yet, she was somehow very calm about the whole affair.

"I'm really sorry about that." She smiled as she patted the younger woman's shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure he isn't the _only _keeper out there." She winked at Kyra before they climbed into Kyra's car.

()

**+ 3 weeks**

Bill stared down at the empty coffee mug in front of him, lost in thought. Image after image of his now dead teammates flashed through his mind.

"Hey, you don't look so good Bill." Startled, he looked up as Fay leaned up against the table, a concerned look on her face.

"Hey Fay. Yeah, not so good here." She sat down in the booth with him, pulling him into a rough hug.

"I'm sorry." He smiled as he hugged her back, somehow comforted by the warmth that seemed to simply radiate from her.

"It's not your fault, anyway, I'm sure you came all this way to Katina for more than just me." She chuckled as they both stared at the table, sitting closer than he would've normally been comfortable.

"Actually, I am here for you. Or, mostly, I, well, peppy just asked me to pass on a message. He's rebuilding the Bulldog and Husky squadrons. And he wants you leading them again." Silence stretched between them before Fay continued. "And I'm also here to tell you that I'm going to the Cornerian Flight Academy. And Peppy… he, um, promised me that I would be assigned as one of the new members of Husky squadron. With you." Bill glanced at her and couldn't help but smile. She was blushing so hard that her pure white fur was turning red.

"Is that so?" she nodded, only able to occasionally glance at him. "Well, in that case, care to join me for lunch? As I recall, last time we got interrupted." She grinned, blushing furiously.

()

**+ 1 month**

Leon sighed as he crouched down in front of the grave stone, running a finger along the name. _Panther Caroso_.

"You stupid cat. Had to get yourself killed before I could skin ya myself, didn't ya? Sorry I couldn't let your folks bury a body. Didn't have time to retrieve it and I'm sorry. I'll miss ya." He found himself sighing as he stood up, shocked by his own emotions. It had been a long time since he had ever actually cared when a comrade had died.

"Mr. Powalski? We haven't met before, but I am Dash Bowmen." Leon jumped slightly, startled by the ape's sudden appearance. He shook the Ape's hand as he stared suspiciously at his Avian companion.

"I know who you are. Your Andross's grandson. What do want, and why is she here?" he smiled as he glanced back at her.

"Myself and Miss Peregrine here, are starting up a little, private task force if you will. And we would like to acquire your skillset. You see, we are going to go into the business of hunting down and eliminating an old boss of yours. One that was, well known to the galactic community." Leon smiled as he glanced at the two of them.

"depending on who it is, I think I know a few people who might be interested in helping."

()

**+ 4 months**

Wolf couldn't help but smile as Fara stepped out of her apartment, her long gown seeming to fit every curve of her body perfectly.

"Well, what do you think?" she had a small smile on her face as she spoke.

"You look as amazing, as you always do." She rolled her eyes as they linked arms and walked down the stairs together.

"You really are a shameless flirt, you know? How's the new eye?" they reached the bottom of the stairs as he responded.

"Not new. Old one just had a fixable crack. Was irritating my eye socket." Fara chuckled and rested her head on his shoulder.

"And why didn't you just get a new one you big dummy?" he forced down the urge to shrug as they walked along the sidewalk.

"Was cheaper." She rolled her eyes again as they walked on in silence. "Well Fara, are you ready for my attempt at a real date?" she nodded as he led her into the park and sat her down on a blanket he had laid out. A basket was already there with food Fay cooked and a bottle of Champagne. He lit a group of candles, setting them on stakes he had placed in the ground.

"This is sweet Wolf. Now fess up, who's idea was it?" he suddenly found the trees and sky around them much more interesting. "Wolf…." He sighed as he responded.

"Alright, alright, I asked Fox for ideas, and Fay cooked the food, but will you just shut up and enjoy it already!" she giggled as she snuggled in to him.

"And who said I wasn't?"


	33. Authors Notes

**So, there Star Fox: The Phoenix Fire! If you enjoyed this story, check out Star Fox: Rise of Venom for more of this story!**

* * *

><p>So I'm writing these just because I feel like explaining my choices. Now, I will admit, another story on inspired me to write this, it is called Star Fox: Wounds. Although, it is more directly based off of the Star Fox Command ending than this (i.e. the events of command have actually happened) I had several personal problems with it. Don't get me wrong, I thought it was a great story but it was missing a few things. PS the afore mentioned story is well worth reading, but its grammar could use an English speaker. I doubt the writers first language was English, but it is a great story none the less.<p>

Now the first problem I had, was that the only familiar characters were Bill, Fox, and Kursed. Although not particularly bad, it just wasn't what I would've wanted. Although, I did like the idea of side characters like Bill having a larger role.

One of my other problems is that Fox never flies. I mean, he is a fighter pilot before a foot soldier, and that is all he shows in Wounds. So that kinda bugged me a little, but it was not the reason for my story, and Wounds was not the only inspiration.

So my other inspirations were photos I came across on google while doing research for Star Fox: Deception. One of these, had Fay, Miyu, and a woman I believe to be Fara, in a booth with glass, holographic ads, and a star field beyond the booth. (They were also with a two headed fox, with a hologram of what I believe to be fox being strangled or captured by a creature) a lot was actually inspired from this, from Fay, Fara, and Miyu working together, to their outfits. Now, Fara in this image is wearing a tank top, Miyu a hoodie, but Fay's white long sleeve jacket was taken from it, as well as her more uncomfortable poise. The cantina scene was inspired almost in its entirety off of this image, although the location was honestly based off of Omega in the Mass Effect series. Fara also has similarities to what I describe her as in the Phoenix fire, specifically having long red hair.

The second image I based this from was of Fara standing in front of an Arwing from Star Fox Assault, but the Arwing had Red G-Diffusers rather than blue (or the more purple in SF: Assault). Obviously, I got the idea for the Phoenix Fire's ships from this. Most of Fara's description came from this image as well. The rolled up sleeves, blaster, long red hair, and the goggles acting as a headband.

Funnily enough, when I started this story, I was originally going to have Wolf and Miyu together, Fox and Fara together, and Krystal dead. One other idea I had was Fara and Wolf being together, and Wolf dying, putting Fox and Fara together. Krystal, having turned irreparably evil, was going to be killed by Fox. (SPOILER WARNING)Then the complaints about Fox and Krystal's breakup in Star Fox Deception cropped up, and I decided on the current story. As a side note, for those who are reading or haven't read Deception, Fox and Krystal's relationship isn't entirely over. Take a second look at the chapter name 'The End?' should give you a hint. (End Spoiler) as a random side note, I had always pegged Bill and Fay together from the beginning, as well as Katt and Falco (Every since reading the Manga with them, I have been wanting to see that happen) but Peregrine was literally designed as I wrote up the chapter she first appeared in.

Anyway, if you have any questions about this story, or why I did what I did, just sling a message my way, and I hope you enjoyed it!


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